Journey to the Sun(Güneşe Yolculuk)

Name: Journey to the Sun
Genre: Drama

Turkey, Netherlands, Germany · 1999
1h 44m
Director Yeşim Ustaoğlu
Starring Nazmi Kırık, Newroz Baz, Mizgin Kapazan, Ara Güler
Genre Drama

Mehmet, a young Turkish man newly migrated from the village Tire, takes a job searching for water leaks below the surface of the streets of Istanbul. Due to a strange set of events, he is mistaken for a Kurd, imprisoned, and brutally beaten. Upon his release a week later, he becomes an outcast marked as a Kurd, losing his apartment, his job, and eventually his girl friend, Arzu. When a Kurdish friend, Berzan is killed in a street protest triggered by a hunger strike, Mehmet takes a trek to return the body to Berzan's home village near the Iraqi border, and learns why so many Kurds are refugees.

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What are critics saying?

The New York Times by A.O. Scott

An incisive drama about a waking nightmare.

Christian Science Monitor by David Sterritt

This is only Ustaoglu's second film, but smart performances and expressive camera work mark her as a talent to watch in the future.

L.A. Weekly by Ernest Hardy

Ustaoglu has made Mehmet unbelievably naive -- and the hardships piled upon him unintentionally evoke "The Perils of Pauline." That dilutes what should be a powerful protest film, and robs it of the emotional impact it aims for.

New York Daily News by Jami Bernard

A remarkable second feature from writer-director Yesim Ustaoglu.

Chicago Tribune by John Petrakis

Though the final journey drags at times, the early expository scenes in the shadows of Saint Sophia and assorted mosques are impressive and quite moving.

New York Post by Jonathan Foreman

Takes you on a fascinating and picturesque journey into a relatively unfamiliar culture.

TV Guide Magazine by Ken Fox

Fictional but frighteningly realistic.

Los Angeles Times by Kevin Thomas

Sensitive, gritty and courageous, this film gathers a power and focus not foreshadowed in its deliberately rambling earlier sequences.

Village Voice by Leslie Camhi

A remarkably vivid portrait of a teeming third-world metropolis

New Times (L.A.) by Luke Y. Thompson

Ustaoglu has pulled off a rare feat in this film, enlightening us about a horrible situation while never losing sight of his central tale of friendship and loyalty.