Idaho International Film Festival
 

LOVELORN
(Gönül Yarasi)

Yavuz Turgul
2005, Turkey, Narrative, 142 minutes
Subtitled
www.gonulyarasi.com

“Veteran director Yavuz Turgul (The Bandit) returns after a nine-year absence with Lovelorn, a magnificently acted, engrossing melodrama about the collateral cost of altruism.”
– Variety

Lovelorn  

This is the story of a lonely single mother, the man who tries to protect her and her ex-husband - who is determined to keep his family together – no matter what the cost...
Lovelorn

Nazim, a newly retired teacher (Turgul regular Sener Sen) comes home to Istanbul after a 15-year teaching stint in a poor Kurdish village and encounters the bitter offspring he left behind, a radically changed city, and he soon encounters an alternate, darkly problematic family.

Upon his arrival, Nazim meets up with his old cafe-haunting buddies, most memorably with Takoz, a fearless bull of a man who offers to lend him his taxi at night until Nazim's pension kicks in. Soon he is cruising the unfamiliar streets of the city. One night, he finds himself the chosen driver and protector of Dunya (Meltem Cumbul), a nightclub hostess Lovelornwho has run away from her abusive husband with her young daughter. After Halil, the ex-husband, arrives at her nightclub and wreaks havoc, and Dunya is accidentally injured and fired from her job, Nazim decides to protect the woman and her young daughter.

Star Meltem Cumbul received the Fipresci Award for Best Actress for her performance, and Lovelorn is currently the official Turkish submission for the 2006 Best Foreign Film Academy Award™.


CLOSING NIGHT GALA FILM

Egyptian Theatre, Sunday, October 1st at 7:00pm