"Mustang" is a Turkish-language movie from last year that was produced by a whole bunch of countries, including France and it was the French official submission to the Academy Awards this year. It managed to get in at the Oscars well as the Golden Globes (lost twice to the Hungarian entry) and many other awards ceremonies. For writer and director Deniz Gamze Ergüven, it was the first full feature film and she started fairly late being past her mid-30s already now. I guess her being a woman helped with the difficult subject of the film. And with the subject, I mean the way women and girls are treated in the Muslim world, especially in rural regions. It is a sad and really shocking state of affairs that in my opinion really is more structured like a cult and not like a global religion. It is truly embarrassing that stuff like this is legal. When there is no emotional abuse, then there is physical abuse and the other way around. And the saddest thing is that we see the grandmother as a woman who has accepted these conditions and grown old in them.
But the girls and young women will not without resisting and fighting for their individuality in terms of who they love, who they marry, how they spend their free time (going to a football game) etc. There were moments when I personally felt the film was a bit too much against men, but I guess this is just the realistic picture and the truck driver (Burak Yigit, also a familiar face in German films) somewhat saves it for the strong sex. One major criticism I have, however, is the way some dramatic moments were handled. The film was quietly convincing and there really was no reason for scenes like the pedophilia parts or the death of one of the girls. I also felt that they were included fairly randomly. The death scene came pretty much out of nowhere and there were no indicators. Also there was almost no mourning at all, which made it feel just included for the sake of it and not delivering and convincing substance.
But these are just minor criticisms. The ending was dramatic enough and shocking scenes like the whole family wanting to see the blood resulting from the woman losing her virginity were shocking enough already. And these also added a lot to the film, just like the way we see guns in here. Overall, I think this was a good film. I was well-entertained during these 95 minutes and I also felt that this film made an impact in showing us that not everything should be tolerated and accepted if it is under the veil of religious freedom. I am glad the Academy and so many others honored this impressive work. There were only minor flaws like the ones I already mentioned or that I sometimes struggled to keep the girls apart, but that also may be just me. I certainly recommend the watch. "Mustang" was a success and is superior to the overrated film that actually won the Foreign Language Oscar. Thumbs up.
But the girls and young women will not without resisting and fighting for their individuality in terms of who they love, who they marry, how they spend their free time (going to a football game) etc. There were moments when I personally felt the film was a bit too much against men, but I guess this is just the realistic picture and the truck driver (Burak Yigit, also a familiar face in German films) somewhat saves it for the strong sex. One major criticism I have, however, is the way some dramatic moments were handled. The film was quietly convincing and there really was no reason for scenes like the pedophilia parts or the death of one of the girls. I also felt that they were included fairly randomly. The death scene came pretty much out of nowhere and there were no indicators. Also there was almost no mourning at all, which made it feel just included for the sake of it and not delivering and convincing substance.
But these are just minor criticisms. The ending was dramatic enough and shocking scenes like the whole family wanting to see the blood resulting from the woman losing her virginity were shocking enough already. And these also added a lot to the film, just like the way we see guns in here. Overall, I think this was a good film. I was well-entertained during these 95 minutes and I also felt that this film made an impact in showing us that not everything should be tolerated and accepted if it is under the veil of religious freedom. I am glad the Academy and so many others honored this impressive work. There were only minor flaws like the ones I already mentioned or that I sometimes struggled to keep the girls apart, but that also may be just me. I certainly recommend the watch. "Mustang" was a success and is superior to the overrated film that actually won the Foreign Language Oscar. Thumbs up.