Set in Dalyan, Muğla, "Brought by the Sea" tells the story of an ex-cop trying to come to terms with his conscious remorse as he fights for an illegal immigrant child. Halil (Onur Saylak)ex-cop who accidentally kills an African immigrant and withdraws to his hometown to refresh his mind. As she spends some time on the sea-side one day, he happens to see this basket ball. As it turns out later, the ball belongs to an illegal immigrant child (Jordan Deniz Boyner),Jordan. Halil just wants to get the ball to his owner at first, He drops by the hospital to leave the ball. When he asks the nurse on duty to give the ball to its owner, the nurse Yaren (Ahu Türkpençe) suggests he give the ball himself by making an unkind insinuation about his troubled past.
The premise of this movie has had great potential actually. The border between Turkey and Greece has been the main conduit for human trafficking since border controls with Spain, Italy and Malta were introduced in the Mediterranean Sea. Though some Greek and EU officials claim that say refugees from the informal visa-free zone developing in the East, around Turkey are taking advantage of a cheap, safe expressway to Europe's borderless Schengen area, of which Greece is member, a refugee's fight is actually not that easy. Those officials do not mention the fact that not every boat has a chance to be properly intercepted. Some of those heavily crowded boats capsize in the middle of the sea. Most of those boats have a space accessible only through a trap door which causes refugees die of asphyxiation. Even if they reach their destination safe and sound, they will probably be welcomed by filthy, stuffy breathless gym saloons. Unfortunately, Brought by the Sea does not really succeed in telling you all that. The acting is so bad; the emotional harmony amongst the actors is so wooden that you just don't feel for the plight of refugees. Boat scenes at sea cinematographically look so poor that it just sounds like a mise en scene provided for a theatre play. It is also known fact English is not spoken commonly in Turkey. That the movie is shot in a sea-side town does not change that fact. Halil (subtled, nuanced Yusuf of "Sonbahar" turned into an easily forgettable, petty character), an ex-cop speaks English fluently enough but he does not remember the word "elephant" and make himself understood by pantomime. There should have been a better way to make English "credible". I am not an expert linguist but African players do not really sound like Africans. It may have been difficult to find enough native Africans but Jordan Deniz Boyner does not really fit that role.
So many cineastes have already clamored "Let's just assume that this movie has never been made and Colgecen stays in our memory with his 'Selamsiz's Band' and 'The Broken Landlord'. I would most probably agree with them if I saw both movies.
The premise of this movie has had great potential actually. The border between Turkey and Greece has been the main conduit for human trafficking since border controls with Spain, Italy and Malta were introduced in the Mediterranean Sea. Though some Greek and EU officials claim that say refugees from the informal visa-free zone developing in the East, around Turkey are taking advantage of a cheap, safe expressway to Europe's borderless Schengen area, of which Greece is member, a refugee's fight is actually not that easy. Those officials do not mention the fact that not every boat has a chance to be properly intercepted. Some of those heavily crowded boats capsize in the middle of the sea. Most of those boats have a space accessible only through a trap door which causes refugees die of asphyxiation. Even if they reach their destination safe and sound, they will probably be welcomed by filthy, stuffy breathless gym saloons. Unfortunately, Brought by the Sea does not really succeed in telling you all that. The acting is so bad; the emotional harmony amongst the actors is so wooden that you just don't feel for the plight of refugees. Boat scenes at sea cinematographically look so poor that it just sounds like a mise en scene provided for a theatre play. It is also known fact English is not spoken commonly in Turkey. That the movie is shot in a sea-side town does not change that fact. Halil (subtled, nuanced Yusuf of "Sonbahar" turned into an easily forgettable, petty character), an ex-cop speaks English fluently enough but he does not remember the word "elephant" and make himself understood by pantomime. There should have been a better way to make English "credible". I am not an expert linguist but African players do not really sound like Africans. It may have been difficult to find enough native Africans but Jordan Deniz Boyner does not really fit that role.
So many cineastes have already clamored "Let's just assume that this movie has never been made and Colgecen stays in our memory with his 'Selamsiz's Band' and 'The Broken Landlord'. I would most probably agree with them if I saw both movies.
