On This Shore

July 2-3-4, 2015

Within the scope of the YAP Istanbul Modern: Young Architects Program, Istanbul Modern Cinema has prepared a selection of three films to take visitors on a journey through Istanbul’s past along its shores. A different film will be screened each evening at the open-air cinema to be set up in Istanbul Modern’s courtyard, reviving the memory of the area where the museum now stands. What the selected films have in common is the way Istanbul’s waterways, quays, and shores have lent an authentic and touching setting to their stories and become visual counterparts of the emotional world of the characters.

Bosphorus Song, Thursday, July 2, 21.30
The Quay of the Lonely Ones, Friday, July 3, 21.30
Tophaneli Ahmet, Saturday, July 4, 21.30

The films will be screened in Turkish without subtitles.

Istanbul Modern Cinema screening fee: 10 TL

THE BOSPHORUS SONG, 1966

Turkey | DVD, Black & White, 100” | Turkish

Director:Nejat Saydam

Cast: Selda Alkor, Tamer Yiğit, Atıf Kaptan, Adnan Şenses

A group of female students who have come to visit Istanbul begin their tour of the “inebriating” Bosphorus under the supervision of their teacher Vildan Hanım. A group of urban lads is accompanying them on this trip where everyone is having a great time. But an unexpected sea accident brings these lovely hours to an end. An ardent love begins between Mine, who falls into the sea, and Tarık, the handsome young man who saves her. The first 20 minutes of the film take the viewer on a tour of Istanbul, to the accompaniment of a potpourri of songs from that period played one after the other. This melodrama, graced by views of Istanbul that are of documentary value, is as important for its visual appeal as for the songs by Tanju Okan which seem to turn the film into a kind of musical dedicated to the Bosphorus.

THE QUAY OF THE LONELY ONES, 1959

Turkey | DVD, Black & White, 113” | Turkish

Director: Ö. Lütfi Akad
Cast: Sadri Alışık, Çolpan İlhan, Turgut Özatay, Melahat İçli

Captain Rıdvan is a lonely man who finds peace in the harbors he visits, until he meets Countess Güner who lives in the care of Ali, a bar owner. The latter will not easily let go of Güner, who is a desperate character. The setting, which shows seedy places in a foggy Istanbul, corresponds to the state of mind of these characters, who find themselves mired in a pessimistic world. The script was written by Atilla İlhan, and the film is evocative of the French poetic realism movement. While paying homage to Çolpan İlhan, who passed away last year, the film is also notable for having been shot where “ALL THAT IS SOLID” is currently installed.

TOPHANELI AHMET: A LOVE STORY, 1971

Turkey | DVD, Black & White, 87” | Turkish

Director: Sırrı Gültekin

Cast: Kadir İnanır, Münir Özkul, Nükhet Egeli, Melek Görgün, Suna Pekuysal

Tophaneli Ahmet, a taxi driver, falls in love with Hülya, a woman he sees in his dreams. One day, by pure coincidence, as he and his older brother take a tour in one of the luxury cars his brother has repaired, he finds the woman of his dreams; he actually meets Hülya and falls in love with her. But Hülya is about to marry a phony who has introduced himself as a rich construction businessman. A thrilling rivalry begins between the deceitful suitor and Ahmet, the penniless lad who is truly in love with Hülya. An entertaining romantic comedy, the film gives the viewer the opportunity to see the shores and islands of Istanbul in the 1970s as well as a number of historical places such as the Sultanahmet Square and Rumeli Hisarı.