NEW YORK―Rarely does a movie send out a pleasant feeling that lingers for a few days―but the Turkish film Kabadayi did. Not in general distribution, an Epoch Times reporter was invited to a sneak peak in Greenwich Village of a film offering that skillfully blends romance, drama and action with a Turkish twist.
With his small band of followers, a "kabadayi" refers to someone who does what he wants while at the same time sincerely helping others. The Turkish meaning of Kabadayi is untranslatable but can be compared to Zorro, Robin Hood and the Godfather rolled into one.
In this delightful adventure movie, Ali Osman is a retired Kabadayi who owns a football field―known as soccer in the U.S.―and shares his meager wealth with the poor living in the "Down and Under." His life changes when he receives a call from a former love, Afet (Selma Kutlu). On her death bed, she asks to see him once more before she dies. The lady tells Ali they have a son, now grown (Ismail Haciogliu).
The son has denounced his mother and refuses to accept this new-found father. But trouble soon finds him in the threat facing his girlfriend Karaca, (Asli Tandogan). The lovely lady is hunted by a handsome but ruthless gangster Devran, (Kenan Imirzalioglu) whose obsession for Karaca turns him into a ticking time bomb.
One last time, Ali brings together his old friends to protect the young lovers. "Kabadayi" not only gives thrilling action but dramatizes the true meaning of love, integrity and sincerity. These values inspired Director Omer Vargi to make the movie. Vargi and writer Yavuz Turgul were so enamored of the story's theme that they shot and produced it in six weeks. The film was shot in Istanbul with a meager budget of $3.5 million.
Skillful camera work and action sequences in each scene of the film keep the viewer totally involved in the story. The film's various themes were creatively interwoven, while subtle humor was an integral part of the story even during the tense final showdown, retaining suspense and a unique charm until the very end.
Sponsored by the Republic of Turkey, Kabadayi is not showing yet in U.S. Plans are to show at New York Turkish Film Festival in October.
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