Movie 'Mahmut and Meryem' based on Elchin's cognominal novel solemnly premiered - PHOTOS

Director Mehmet Ada Oztekin’s debut feature, ‘Mahmut ile Meryem’ (Mahmut and Meryem), has all the makings of a box-office success. An epic star-crossed love story set in the 16th century might just be the ideal film for both moviegoers and TV aficionados.

It seems you can’t really go wrong with the recent epic romantic release "Mahmut ile Meryem" (Mahmut and Meryem). The film plays to the rising nationalist sentiments in Turkey’s pop culture in more ways than one, with its story, genre and production details. It’s a star-crossed story of young love, a winner at the Turkish box office in most cases. The cast and crew are made up of names that would appeal both to the young audience and the mainstream audience that is glued to their TV sets every night for the plethora of popular shows.

Here is why “Mahmut ile Meryem" is the ideal movie project, guaranteed to fill the theaters: The story is set in the early 16th century in the now-Azeri city of Ganja, a city that has a volatile history, having been governed by everyone from the Ottomans to the Mongols, Seljuks and Safavids. Historical drama has been the go-to genre both for screen and TV in the last decade.

With its story and setting, “Mahmut ile Meryem” hits the right notes with an audience that lets its nationalistic steam off by reimagining historical glory right out of school history books. On another front, the film hits other notes through its production details. “The film is an adaptation of a famous Azeri novel of three decades, written by the now deputy prime minister of Azerbaijan, Elchin Afandiyev.
 
The film is a Turkish-Azeri joint production, likely to draw an audience that has been impressed by the Turkish government’s self-proclaimed position as the leader of the Turkic states.

Like every other epic love story, the title puts the names of the boy and the girl together. The boy, Mahmut, is the heir to the throne of Ganja. Unlike his power-crazy father, Mahmut’s gentler, more humanist side makes him averse to power, and hence to the throne.

Like every other epic love story, Mahmut falls for the girl who is the epitome of conflict and danger. The devoted Muslim that he is, Mahmut falls for the daughter of a Christian monk, Meryem. The fathers-in-law are not impressed with the blossoming of this young love for reasons of religious incompatibility, the succession of the throne and other complications on a similar scale. The film then steers toward a fantastic road movie that might look interesting on paper, but looks too contrived and stiff on screen.


/HurriyetDailynews/