Ich sah die Sonne (2009)

Ich sah die Sonne: Directed by Mahsun Kirmizigül. With Mahsun Kirmizigül, Demet Evgar, Murat Ünalmis, Cemal Toktas. In the southeast region of Turkey, the Altun family lives in a small mountainside village plagued by a 25-year war, making their daily life a hellish struggle. As the war continues to intensify, the family is forced to migrate west to the city of Istanbul. While Haydar and Isa Altun decide to stay in Turkey with their young children, Davut Altun and his family migrate north to Norway, enlisting the help of smugglers. They eventually reach their destination and find work in a supermarket, but life as refugees proves relentless. Back in Istanbul, Haydar watches over the family as his wife undergoes an operation due to pregnancy complications. Their son makes friends with a group of transvestites, helping him to understand why he has felt different all of his life. While liberating, his newfound identity is seen as a disgrace to the rest of his family, leading him to flee from the abuse it produces.

“About the movie: One of the messages of the movie which is the problem of Turks and Kurds is very useful and must be emphasized. Turks and Kurds are brothers and of the same team. Another message, which is the homosexuality doesnu0026#39;t have anything to do with the movieu0026#39;s general outline and I still canu0026#39;t understand, why it is there. Most probably in order to gain the Western audienceu0026#39;s admiration. The funny part is about Norway. I donu0026#39;t know if the Norwegians somehow paid for the movie but there couldnu0026#39;t be any better propaganda for the country. I also live in Europe and we all know that Norway is not paradise and has other (maybe not financial or material issues but definitely social and pertaining to the Norwegian behaviour to foreigners) problems.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAbout its Oscar-candidacy: Well the West does like topics like homosexuality, political instabilities in a non-Western country (Oscar is quite political sometimes) and especially the well-known sun-symbolism. I donu0026#39;t know if Mahsun Kirmizigul also became part of the so-called Hollywood-initiation, but it can hardly be a coincidence that the sun is so emphasized in the movie. I donu0026#39;t really believe that it is going to get the prize.”