DRAMA; 2hr 2min (German and Turkish with subtitles)
STARRING: Baki Davrack, Nurgül Yesilçay
Family ties: Davrak and Köse
Film-maker Fatih Akin (Head-On) has close ties to Turkey and Germany. The Edge of Heaven is set in both countries and covers a fair deal of ground, but it’s surprising accessible all the same: while living in Germany, an estranged Turkish father (Turcel Krutiz as Ali) and son (Davrak as Nejat) fall out even further over the death of a prostitute (Nursel Köse) who is selling her body to help educate her daughter (Yesilçay as Ayten) back in Turkey. When academic Nejat travels to Turkey in search of political dissident Ayten, who has already fled the country, the place strikes a chord with him and he decides to stay.
How these and other closely related paths converge, and the definitive effect they have on each other, could have come across as a sociological treatise. But Akin moves so easily that the canvas never feels cluttered, and besides, the need to reach out and belong surpasses all borders, regardless of the investment and the risk.
