Contemporary Turkish Cinema

Beş Vakit / Times and Winds

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This unforgettable, beautifully shot film is a lyrical and haunting portrait of life in a remote Turkish mountain village, where three preteens struggle with dreams and desires that are utterly specific and personal, and yet somehow universal. Beş Vakit (Times and Winds) is a haunting portrait of the tensions that lie beneath the seemingly placid surface of a remote, beautiful and rugged mountain village perched between sea and sky, untouched by the modern world. It recounts the dreams and desires of villagers whose simple lives are regulated by the calls to prayer that divide the day (and the film) into five sections (the Turkish title literally translates as "five times"). The main characters are three youngsters, two boys and a girl living in this harsh, strictly disciplined culture, where both animals and children are frequently beaten. In subtle touches, the picture deals with the early sexual awakening of the three, their communion with nature and revolt against their parents. Ömer, the imam's son, fantasizes about killing his father. He collects scorpions, hoping they will do the job for him. Ömer’s best friend Yakup has fallen in love with the beautiful schoolteacher and turns against his own father when he discovers that his dad is a Peeping Tom who has been spying on the young woman Yakup worships. The girl, Yıldız, is obliged to mother her baby brother, while her budding sexuality is troubled after she witnesses her parents making love. Erdem's lyrical and meditative film is visually stunning, shot by his talented regular director of photography Florent Herry and with an extraordinary score by Arvo Pärt.
(Elliot Stein, The Tribeca Film Festival Catalog).

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