Turkish author Orhan Kemal’s classic novel “72. Koğuş” (Ward
72) gets one more adaptation to the big screen through the
pen of author Ayfer Tunç in last week’s film of the same
name, directed by Murat Saraçoğlu, also the director behind
the period piece “120.”
This is the second time Kemal’s story is getting a
feature film treatment, the first one being a 1987
production, starring Kadir İnanır in its title role.
The story is set in 1940s Turkey, a time when World War II
had forced destitution on the country. It’s always hard to
adapt literature to the big screen, and though the film is
decorated with an entourage of celebrated actors and
actresses, the difficulties of reflecting a literary text in
cinema in light of coherency have tarnished this very
well-intentioned film, produced by the production company of
actors Kerem Alışık and Yavuz Bingöl.
Set in the confines of a prison, the film starts off with a
hoard of inmates fighting over a leftover chicken drumstick
thrown out by one of the cruel guards. The men are not men
anymore, observes the proud Captain Ahmet (Yavuz Bingöl),
also an inmate. As he watches his fellow inmates from the
72nd ward in this freezing courtyard, he ponders whether
people in such conditions have any integrity left. And so we
are introduced to the members of this ward, all of them with
rotten teeth, torn clothes and not a bite to eat. But things
just might change when Ahmet receives money from his mother
and decides to share it by buying all of his ward mates a
round of hot food. How long will this generosity last? We
wonder this as we see the cunning eyes of several of these
men waiting to take advantage of Ahmet’s naïveté.
In the parallel story, we set foot into the women’s side of
the prison. Frankly, a much more interesting story. With the
arrival of the headstrong new inmate Fatma (Hülya Avşar,
proving once again that she can actually act) the hierarchy
of the women inmates might change. Fatma immediately
befriends the pregnant Meryem (Songül Öden) who is on death
row, nervously waiting for her execution after her birth.
Their bond does not sit very well with the other women, who
see Fatma’s beauty and stubbornness as a threat and are
ready to do anything to see her demise. In fact her beauty
catches the attention of Ahmet, who looks upon her as an
angel from a distance, and of the mobster inmate Hilmi
(Cihan Canova), who is only interested in satisfying his
carnal desires. This prison is a place where the cunning,
the cruel and the opportunist can survive. We can imagine
the horrible things that take a toll on Fatma. Yet it isn’t
only Fatma’s story that deserves our attention. Most of the
women here have been imprisoned on false charges and as such
serve as examples of women persecuted by a patriarchal
system.
The relationship between Fatma and Meryem, in my view, is
the strongest point of the film, not only thanks to the
strong chemistry between Öden and Avşar but also the way
Saraçoğlu has emphasized the importance of the remaining
crumbs of humanity left in this dire place through the
compassion of two women who stick up for and support each
other.
The main problem with the film lies in its lack of focus.
The parallel stories of the male and female wards are not
woven into each other very well, and at times we feel like
we are watching two very different movies. Kemal’s novel,
through the two wards, points to the desperation of humanity
in horrendous conditions; though the film makes it a point
to underscore the same predicament, the drone tempo makes it
feel that the potential was not fully tapped.
The choice of using intensely blazing violins throughout the
soundtrack alienates the audience at essential scenes. The
actors fully transmit their emotions without needing any
grandiose musical support, and yet we are bombarded with
such a high-pitched fortissimo that at times watching the
screen becomes unbearable.
The cinematography of the film is a plus on the atmospheric
aspect; Demian Barba illustrates with his lighting and
framing a kind of hell-struck location that looms like an
iron hammer waiting to strike down on the characters at any
moment.
Although “72. Koğuş” is an admirable effort and manifests
itself as a decent adaptation of the novel, it still manages
to leave the audience aching to see something more:
substance. This could have been an amazing film, but
acquiesces to only be good.
‘72. Koğuş’
Directed by: Murat Saraçoğlu
Genre: drama
Cast: Kerem Alışık, Hülya Avşar, Yavuz Bingöl, Songül Öden |