RogerEbert.com by Sheila O'Malley

I am a cat owner, I admit, but even I was surprised at the power of Kedi. Where did all that emotion come from? It's because what Torun really captures in her unexpectedly powerful film is kindness in its purest form.

Christian Science Monitor by Peter Rainer

The Istanbul interviewees believe it is their responsibility to look after the cats but not confine them as indoor pets. This responsibility is a matter of almost spiritual deference.

IndieWire by Eric Kohn

Kedi is a playful and poignant look at the complex nature of the creatures and their inherent appeal to humankind.

Variety by Joe Leydon

[A] splendidly graceful and quietly magical documentary.

Austin Chronicle by Steve Davis

Director Ceyda Torun was born in Istanbul and lived there as a young girl, leaving the city with her family at age 11 to live in Jordan and later New York City, but it’s abundantly clear her heart has never left her birthplace. Kedi is a valentine to her childhood home.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) by Rebecca Tucker

The reason for the city’s proliferation of cats comes late in the film, and it’s delivered as quickly as the rest of the doc’s information: long story short, the cats arrived on ships, figured their journey was over and never returned to port.

The Film Stage

Through a good balance of meditative imagery and narrative stylings, Kedi is a joyous little slice of cinema that instills a life-affirming sensation in the viewer.

The Film Stage by Mike Mazzanti

Through a good balance of meditative imagery and narrative stylings, Kedi is a joyous little slice of cinema that instills a life-affirming sensation in the viewer.

Wall Street Journal by Joe Morgenstern

An enchanting documentary by Ceyda Torun, operates on three levels, and we’re not speaking metaphorically here.

Time by Stephanie Zacharek

Delightful and visually splendid.

The New York Times by Glenn Kenny

The movie is replete with ingeniously constructed mini-narratives, including a turf war. The mesmerizing score by Kira Fontana, interspersed with well-chosen Turkish pop, is a real asset.

Time Out by Joshua Rothkopf

These beasts awaken something within the people, making them kinder and more playful. If Kedi did the same for audiences, that wouldn’t be so bad.

Village Voice by Bilge Ebiri

In its own pleasantly dreamy and lilting way, the film embodies what it preaches: As life gets rougher, people endure not by hardening themselves even further, but by continuing to find the freedom to be kind. In Istanbul, the chaos never really stops. Kedi slyly reminds us that the humanity, too, has always been there.

The Hollywood Reporter by Sheri Linden

Kedi eloquently taps into the mutual attraction between the cats and their people, as well as the animals’ complexity and resilience.

The A.V. Club by Mike D'Angelo

There’s a fascinating therapeutic undercurrent to the interviews with human beings.

Slant Magazine by Keith Watson

Ceyda Torun’s Kedi is an open, tender-hearted meditation on the relationship between felines and humans.