Uzak Analysis

Uzak (2002)

Written, Directed, Shot and Produced by: Nuri Bilge Ceylan
Won Best Actor Male at Cannes Film Festival.

In one scene, Mahmut pretends to enjoy intellectual filmmakers like Tarkovsky and as soon as Yusuf leaves, he switches the DVD and watches porn. I laughed out loud at this scene, the filmmaker is making fun of himself as well - it's because even this film is slow and meditative. We get it right from the first shot of the film - it is a static wide shot of a person walking towards us, for more than two minutes, and then it pans a bit - this shot sets up the pace, as well as the visual aesthetics of the film. Most of the film has static long shots, it uses the off screen space as well - Ceylan's favorite filmmakers include Yasujiro Ozu which explains this influence. He is also influenced by Michelangelo Antonioni - who is known for his abstract filmmaking, to capture alienation.

This film is about loneliness, existentialism - films like these capture a certain facet of humanity and remind us that we are not alone in this - if we look for escapism in such films, we'd be bored to death. The very purpose of this film, is to make us feel the emptiness of life. We feel it when we look at Mahmut staring into his television, when the signal is lost. Films like these, are more about the setting, tonality and the overall viewing experience than the conflict, the events which happen in the film. They capture nature very well, the contrast between the exteriors and the interiors is distinguishable too - the exteriors are photographic frames, while the interiors are dull and grainy - depicting what they mean in the context of life. In the ending scene, when Mahmut sits on the bench and when the breeze hits his face, that's a good moment. I wonder if moments like these can be written on the script, they have to be captured on set.