Timur Selçuk

Mavi Sürgün is a fictionalized account of one period of the life of a Turkish journalist who was condemned to exile for an article he wrote in 1925. He turned his punishment into a reward by creating a little paradise in what is today the holiday resort, Bodrum. In fact he is considered by some to be the first ecologist. The film concentrates on this latter aspect of his character and through flashbacks portrays the inner turmoil of a man who is trying to come to terms with his past. The slow pace is somewhat of a drawback, the flashbacks are often confusing and the protagonist is not always very convincing. But the photography of the country side is exceptional Kenan Ormanlar and the short appearance by a very theatrical Hanna Schygulla of Fassbinder fame adds a little spice to the drama.

An orphan, Yusuf, is adopted by Selahattin Bey, an idealistic district governor. Yusuf falls in love with Muazzez, the daughter of Selahattin Bey. When Shahir, the son of Hilmi Bey, wants to marry Muazzez, a great conflict arises between him and Yusuf.

It is a Zeki-Metin comedy that satirizes the bans in the Republic of Turkey.

An urban Turkish teacher is transferred for political reasons to a backward Kurdish village in the mountains near the Iranian border. He is welcomed with distrust, but during that harsh year the mutual cultural misunderstandings fade away.