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"THE TEN BEST TURKISH FILMS"
DRY SUMMER (Susuz Yaz)
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| Festivals and Awards:
Golden Bear, Berlin Film Festival |
Synopsis:
Dry Summer, a village story whose source is the struggle over land and water, is one of the most stunning examples of the clash between good and evil in the Turkish Cinema. Repeating the success he achieved with
The Revenge of the Snakes, a Fakir Baykurt adaptation shot in 1962, in Dry
Summer, Metin Erksan shows the confrontation between two brothers, Osman and Hasan. Osman surrounds the water that springs from their lands with barriers to prevent the village from using it. Being a good man, Hasan argues that the others should also use the water. Confessing a murder actually committed by his brother, Hasan is convicted and sent to jail. After his release he learns that Osman used deception to take away his wife and marry her. Hasan loses control. In the ensuing fight, he drowns Osman in the water and then clears away the barriers.
One of the best examples of the social realism that first appeared in Turkish Cinema in the early 60's,
Dry Summer, due to its success in portraying the sexuality of rural areas and its ingenuity in handling erotic elements, earns a special place in our film history. One should also emphasize that the film marked the rise of Hülya Koçyigit's career.
About the Director: Metin Erksan
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Metin Erksan worked as a cinema critic in various newspapers and magazines. He graduated from the Department of History of Art in Istanbul University. In 1952, he directed his first film, The Life of Poet Veysel written by Bedri Rahmi Eyuboglu. He directed social realistic films such as Beyond the Nights, The Revenge of the Snakes, Bitter Life and created his own style in his later films such as Dry Summer, Time to Love, and The Well. He won the Golden Bear with Dry Summer in Berlin Film Festival in 1964 and became a pioneer in the recognition of Turkish cinema abroad.
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