Burning Days

  • 128'
  • Turkey
  • 2022

If there is ever a Hollywood remake of Burning Days, it could be titled ‘Village Heat’. This is because Emin Alper's film customises many classic film noir tropes for its own decidedly modern purposes. Prosecutor Emre is a newcomer to the village of Yaniklar in Turkey. His first case, the rape of a local gypsy girl, is complicated by the fact that he himself was its eyewitness at a drunken party – except that a blackout (that great noir device of unconsciousness) has clouded his memory.

The film is densely woven from three plot strands: the rape; a local political battle involving water management and deadly sinkholes in the earth (reminiscent of the public intrigue in Chinatown from 1974); and, last but not least, an intimate question involving Emre's own sexuality – and the extent of his willingness to acknowledge it. These threads are seemingly separate until events pull them together in surprising ways. Traditional noir elements – such as the paranoia of a stranger who is faced with the disquieting, sometimes violent rituals of a tightly-knit community – are evoked not only for the sake of an atmosphere of dread, but also to address the political reality of the ‘mob mentality’ in today's world.

 

Adrian Martin

  • 128'
  • Turkey
  • 2022
Director
Emin Alper
Premiere
Dutch Premiere
Country of production
Turkey
Year
2022
Festival Edition
IFFR 2023
Length
128'
Medium
DCP
Language
Turkish
Producers
Nadir Öperli, Kerem Catay
Production Companies
Ay Yapım, Liman Film
Sales
The Match Factory GmbH
Screenplay
Emin Alper
Cinematography
Christos Karamanis
Editor
Özcan Vardar, Eytan İpeker
Production Design
Nadide Argun Van Uden
Sound Design
Nardi van Dijk
Music
Stefan Will
Cast
Selahatti̇n Paşali, Eki̇n Koç, Erol Babaoğlu, Erdem Şenocak, Seli̇n Yeni̇nci̇
Local Distributor
September Film
Director
Emin Alper
Premiere
Dutch Premiere
Country of production
Turkey
Year
2022
Festival Edition
IFFR 2023
Length
128'
Medium
DCP
Language
Turkish
Producers
Nadir Öperli, Kerem Catay
Production Companies
Ay Yapım, Liman Film
Sales
The Match Factory GmbH
Screenplay
Emin Alper
Cinematography
Christos Karamanis
Editor
Özcan Vardar, Eytan İpeker
Production Design
Nadide Argun Van Uden
Sound Design
Nardi van Dijk
Music
Stefan Will
Cast
Selahatti̇n Paşali, Eki̇n Koç, Erol Babaoğlu, Erdem Şenocak, Seli̇n Yeni̇nci̇
Local Distributor
September Film