Valley of the Wolves: Palestine explained

Valley of the Wolves: Palestine
Director:Zübeyr Şaşmaz
Producer:Raci Şaşmaz
Cinematography:Selahattin Sancaklı
Editing:Kemalettin Osmanlı
Music:Gökhan Kırdar
Studio:Pana Film
Distributor:Özen Film
Runtime:105 minutes
Country:Turkey
Language:Turkish
Hebrew
Arabic
Budget:$10 million
Gross:$12,732,423

Valley of the Wolves: Palestine (Turkish: Kurtlar Vadisi: Filistin) is a 2011 Turkish action film directed by Zübeyr Şaşmaz and starring Necati Şaşmaz, Nur Fettahoğlu and Erdal Beşikçioğlu. The story revolves around a Turkish commando team which goes to Israel on a rampage of revenge to track down the Israeli military commander responsible for the Gaza flotilla raid. It is part of the Valley of the Wolves media franchise, based on the Turkish television series of the same name, and a sequel to (2006) and (2008).[1]

The film, which went on nationwide general release across Turkey on, was at the time the most expensive Turkish films ever made.[2]

Valley of the Wolves: Palestine was criticized for being anti-Israeli and inflammatory.

Synopsis

After a civilian flotilla attempts to break the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip to bring humanitarian assistance and building materials, it is boarded by the Israeli military. Some activists violently resist and are killed by the Israeli soldiers. A Turkish commando team led by Polat Alemdar (Necati Şaşmaz) travels to the West Bank, where they launch a covert campaign against Israeli military personnel in an attempt to track down and eliminate an Israeli general, Moşe Ben Eliyezer (Erdal Beşikçioğlu), who was responsible for the flotilla raid. Polat manages to wound Moshe, who from that moment on goes with an eye patch. After he finds out that the Turkish commando receives support from Palestinian Abdullah, Moshe arrests Abdullah's family and bulldozers their house, with Abdullah's son Ahmet in it. After a fierce urban battle, Polat kills Moshe.

Cast

Production

Pana Film had already settled on the Palestinian territories as the setting of the film and was about to start shooting when the Gaza flotilla raid occurred on 31 May 2010. The existing script was subsequently rewritten to feature the raid as the centre piece of the plot. "This is not about taking revenge for Mavi Marmara", stated producer Zübeyr Şaşmaz. "The goal of the film is to show what the Palestinians are going through."[3] Screenwriter Bahadır Özdener added: "We're calling out to people's conscience. All we want is freedom for innocent and tormented Palestinian people living in inhumane conditions in the world's biggest prison."

The film, which is projected to cost over $20 million, making it one of the most expensive Turkish films, was shot in 11 weeks on location in Adana and Tarsus (Turkey) with a team of 400 people during the summer of 2010.[4] [5] [6] Officials from Pana Film said that these locations were chosen, after scouting several locations in Lebanon, Syria and Bulgaria as well as 20 provinces in Turkey, including Hatay, Elazığ, Şanlıurfa and Gaziantep, due to "the historical texture, the streets and local culture of these places". According to Bünyamın Köselı, writing in Today's Zaman, "approximately 3,000 fans were drawn to the Şehit Kerim neighborhood in Tarsus, where some of the scenes were shot", "which makes the salesmen in the city very happy". Extensive re-shoots were later required after some of the film's action sequences were burned during the lab process.

Release

The announcement of the film's release came just days after Israel's attack on the Gaza flotilla and according to Emrah Güler, writing in Hürriyet Daily News, "the name of the movie was enough for millions to buy tickets". Technical problems however resulted in the release of the film being postponed until .[7]

The film was premiered at a special gala screening on and a press screening on at Nişantaşı City's Shopping Mall in Istanbul, where director Zübeyr Şaşmaz defended his film against criticism like that the film would earn money by exploiting Palestine and Islamic feelings.[8] [9]

The film finally received an 18 certificate from the FSK in Germany because of their initial concerns over the film's perceived anti-Israeli and anti-American overtones and its scheduled release on (International Holocaust Remembrance Day) which caused some controversy about it being antisemitic propaganda. Jewish organisations as well as politicians of Turkish descent opposed the film and some tried to ban it.[10] [11] [12] [13] [14]

The film opened on nationwide general release in 364 screens across Turkey on at number 1 in the national box office with a first weekend gross of US$3,830,431.[15]

Controversy

The film has been called anti-Israeli and anti-Semitic.[16] [17] [18] It was strongly criticized in Germany as anti-Israeli and inciting anti-Semitic sentiments, including the timing chosen for its premiere (Holocaust Remembrance Day).[16]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 'Valley of the Wolves: Palestine' . Sebnem . Arsu . . 2010-09-02 . 2010-09-02 .
  2. https://foreignpolicy.com/2010/11/11/turkeys-rambo-takes-on-israel/ Turkey’s Rambo takes on Israel
  3. Web site: Anti-Israel film on Gaza ship opens in Turkey . . 2011-01-28 . 2011-01-28.
  4. Web site: Valley of the Wolves: Palestine . Cumhuriyet . 2010-03-06 . 2010-07-30.
  5. Web site: 'Valley of the Wolves: Palestine' . Bünyamın . Köselı . . 2010-08-15 . 2010-08-15 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110120150541/http://todayszaman.com/news-219062-valley-of-the-wolves-palestine.html . 2011-01-20 . dead .
  6. Web site: Actor Necati Şaşmaz is a fan of his onscreen persona . Murat . Tokay . . 2010-08-15 . 2010-08-15 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110131074930/http://www.todayszaman.com/news-233895-actor-necati-sasmaz-is-a-fan-of-his-onscreen-persona.html . 2011-01-31 . dead .
  7. Web site: Turkish cinema hopes to cash in on political turmoil . Emrah . Güler . . 2010-07-16 . 2010-07-30.
  8. Web site: Movie on Gaza aid ship opens in Turkey . . 28 January 2011 . 2011-01-28 . 2011-01-29 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110129161245/http://www.todayszaman.com/news-233759-movie-on-gaza-aid-ship-opens-in-turkey.html . dead .
  9. Web site: 'Valley of the Wolves: Palestine' released in Turkey . . 2011-01-28 . 2011-01-28.
  10. News: 'Valley of the Wolves' Controversy: 'Anti-Semitic' Turkish Blockbuster Denied Release in Germany. Der Spiegel . 26 January 2011 .
  11. Web site: German film board prevents release of Turkish film . . 2011-01-25 . 2011-01-25.
  12. Web site: 'Valley of the Wolves' is just a movie, Turkish ministry says . . 2011-01-26 . 2011-01-26.
  13. Web site: Turkey revenge movie gets German snub on Holocaust Day . Benjamin . Harvey . Cornelius Rahn . . 2011-01-27 . 2011-01-27.
  14. Web site: German ratings agency reverses decision on Turkish film . . 2011-01-27 . 2011-01-27.
  15. Web site: Kurtlar Vadisi Filistin (Valley of the Wolves: Palestine) . Box Office Mojo . 2011-01-30.
  16. Web site: A Turkish Anti-Israeli movie: "Valley of the Wolves: Palestine" . January 24, 2011 . July 9, 2017.
  17. Web site: A Turkish anti-Israeli film titled Valley of the Wolves: Palestine (to be released on January 28) portrays the Mavi Marmara incident as a premeditated attack by the IDF on innocent people . January 25, 2011 . July 9, 2017 . The Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center.
  18. Web site: 'Anti-Semitic' Turkish Blockbuster Denied Release in Germany . January 26, 2011 . July 9, 2017 . SPIEGEL ONLINE.