Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris

REVUE DE PRESSE. PRESS REVIEW.BERHEVOKA ÇAPÊ.RwISTA STAMPA.DENTRO DE LA .PRENSA.BASIN ÖZETi
and became a director. In 1974 in the
Yumurtahk district of Adana,".h~c.w.as
blamed for killing a judge during anargument
that broke out in a nightclub. He did
time in prison, but was later released for political
reasons.
There were stormy relations with women,
but hishappy days were with his last
wife, Fato~ Güney, who never,left him
alone until the end of his life. YIlmaz
Güney's last curtain in his 25 years in films
ended with "Yol," the assembly ofwhich he
carried out during the days he spent in Paris
during his exile after he f}ed prison and "Le
Mur," whichhe completelydirected himself.
The filni "Yol," whose scenario he
wrote andwhose editing he did and whose
director was ~erif Gören, shared the 1982
Golden Palm at the Cannes Film Festival
with "Missing" bythe famous Greek direc- .
tor Costa Gavras. Güney's films were forbidden
in Turkey for many years because
the powers in the government and thé soldiers
during the time when there was a military
coup counted him as having a dangerouspersonality.
Eleven years later, as a result
of the democratic winds that seemed to
be blowing and the efforts of his wife and
friends, 'the viewer in Turkey had the opportunity
to see this film. His wife; Fato~.
Güney, gave the opening address at a gala
. 'evening in the Zeytinburnu Abdi lpekçi
Sports Hall. The audience was filled with
the artist's friends intent on makingGüney
come alive in memory for themselves and
his loyal viewers and. the young generations
who never knew him. Fato~ Güney
couldn't hold back her tears in front of the
crowd, and she thanked the labor unions,
foundations, press and artists who had supported
the YJlmaz Güney Culture and Arts
Foundation. . .'
She continued, "We are here because.of
Costa Gavras, who is of Greek origin
and one of the leading film directors
in the history of. the movie
industry, in his movies especially
focuses on intensive political themes.
He hascriticised both the capitalist wÇ>rld
and the Iron Curtain,by shooting such f'ùm~
as "Z", "Etat de Siege", and "Music Box".
Some of his other works include "Compartiment",
"Tueurs", "Un Homme de Trop",.
"L'Aveu", and "Missing" which shared the
Golden Palin Award with "Yol" Yllmaz
Güney's film.,
He came from a poor family and in the
early 50's the rather aggressive right wing
YJlmaz. In a little whilethe heroes whom
he created will be shown on the screen.
They are real; they are our people ... They
are our people drawn from thé Tûrkish and
Kurdish people. This evening I would like
to ask you to be constrained in your excitement.
Because this evening .is Yllmaz's
evening. There is a brand new generation.
that doesn't know Yllmaz. Let's let them get
to know him." Later on the film's actors
were invited on stage.
One of the film's lead actors, Halil Ergün,
who asked the impatient, overly excited
people to becalm, warned as follows:
"Friends, I am trying to be part of the artistic
struggle in Turkey as a democrat and
revolutionary for 30 years. I came here to
watch the film for which the great Ylimaz
Güney wrote the scenario. Most importantly,
I want to watch an artistic product as an
artistic product. I salute you."
On stage also was the film's child actor,
Engin CÇik, now a grownup young man
but until now unable to see the film because
of the II-year censorship.
Thelast guest of the evening, and undoubtedly
the most interesting of all was, .
Costa Gavras, the Greek director who has
put his signature on world~famous,provocative
films. Gavras was obviously very excited
and touched. He said, "I am very happy
at being able to see this film with you .
Unfortunately it's only after millions of
people have been able to see this film
throughout the whole world that you are finally
able to see it. Without modesty let me
say the following: This is a great film for
the Turkish and Kurdish film world. At the
same time, I'm sorry that YJlmaz was unable
to have the honor of seeing it with us.
That person spent his whole life among
poor people and struggled for democracy
and the honor of the Kurdish people as well
government maçle it very çlifticu~tforhim.to .
study. Like many others, as his only solu-
"",n ne ch"""" \.() ,-nUni'i!..,ale to Francewhere
he studied literature and later he went .on to
attend the Institute of Graduate Çinematographic
Studies (IDHEC). Gavrashas been
residing there ever since. While inthe middle
of shooting a new film, Gavras suspend~
cd his own work to attend th~ gala opening
night of the film Yol (Road) whichwas being
shown for the first time in Turkeyafter
years of having been censured. While Gavras
was here, he answered some questions
posed to him by the TDN.
What is your opinion regarding Yilmaz
Gooey's art and of bis movie "Yol"?
"I think Ylimaz Gü~ey is an important di-
as Turkish people. He was.a great artist
whose heart was full of feelings for democracy,
revolution and patriotism." Following
Gavras' speech, Fato~ Güney presented
him with a plaque from the Foundation.
The first showing of this film was disappointing
in the sense that one couldn't follow
the dialogue because the sound track
was broken. Thé curtain in the back and a
light that flashed on and off in a corridor of
the sports hall made one uncomfortable.
Because these things had an effect, it's impossible
to.make a proper evaluation. But
one could still say the scenes, the acting and
the effects were persuasive and good.
It is also a mistake to talk as if the entire
film belonged to Yllmaz Güney. However
much he may have written of the scenaJio
himself, onecouldsay that a new spirit was
given to it on the editing table. It would be a
mistake for the cinema world to neglect the
share a film director like ~erif Gören had in
making it. If some people say that Güney
had planned this film frame by frame and
relayed this to the director, it is still a matter
ofbeing able to give these things a material
form. This capability exists in Gören, and it
is not just a matter of being able to lay one's
hands on the scenes of a story, to create
beautiful natural compositions and to show
the actors' obvious mental states by remote
control.
I think that Güney's active persona in the
Turkish cinema won a reputation and rightly
so, thanks to the films he made -- until
"Yol." But his political mission left the film
director's name in the shadows. The soundest
measure here is conceding the share of
both of them as creators. Before this film,
Gören, who assisted Güney on a number of .
occasions, made the film on the basis of
trust and understanding. Güney also gave
new form to what had been shot while it
was on the editingtable.
A master passed through Istanbul
I By TDNlstanbul Office I
22
rector not only in Turkey but all over the
world. His movies are important because
they deal with reality and his aesthetics are
very personal and unusual. I can say they
arc linked with Turkish art, not so much resulting
from the influences of the foreign
cinema but rather as a result of the evolution
of Turkish art."
You met and observed him Qn the film
set How would you best describe his style?
'''1 met him several times. I was only able
to see him once on thé set while at work during
the shooting of'Le Mur' (The Wall) in
Paris. I think he was full of passion, probably
more than any other director, very
close to the actors, very dose to e.very tech-