SIVAS

Germany/ Turkey, 2014, 97 minutes, Colour.
Directed by Kaan Mujdeci.

Very mixed reactions to this film.

On the one hand, it was screened at many festivals to some acclaim and was Turkey’s nomination for consideration for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar of 2014.

On the other hand, the characters and plot have a certain savagery about them which was alienating to many audiences.

The setting is in the countryside of Turkey, not very attractive in itself, hills and plains, farms and small villages. There are poor homes as well as the local school.

In this context, the film shows the children at home and at school, some rivalry, some bullying, some friendships. One of the key episodes involves who will play Prince Charming rather than the seven dwarfs in the performance of Snow White.

However, the focus is on one of the boys, his life at home, clashes with his brother, rivalry with other boys but, especially, his finding a dog, Sivas, who has been brought to fight in local dog clashes. The dog is abandoned but the little boy fosters him, brings him home and cares for him.

The father is critical. The older brother is an opportunist and wants to sell him after the dog’s success in fights. The little boy is very protective.

Other fights are arranged and graphically filmed, the dog finally winning out and bonding once more with the young boy.

The people in this story are quite fierce in themselves and in their relationship with others, in their work on farms, with horses and abandoned horses and, especially, with the dogs.

The English subtitles are particularly crass and crude, putting all kinds of swearing into the mouth of most of the characters and, most especially, the young boy.