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YEMEK the Movie in Turkey
Cinema, a captivating tapestry of moving pictures, is often regarded as the legacy left behind by time travelers. Within this realm, actors and actresses breathe life into spirits that might otherwise be lost to the annals of time. While the film industry crafts narratives that may not transcend simple myths, certain cinematic gems etch themselves into our collective memory through compelling plots, innovative storytelling, and masterful cinematography.
One such cinematic masterpiece is “Yemek Türkiye” (Dining Turkey), a collaborative creation by FabUK Production and 24 Kare Yapım in Turkey. Helmed by nine directors across nine cities, under the overarching guidance of Ali Kaygısız, the film intricately weaves disparate stories around a central theme.
At the heart of this cinematic journey is the universal binding force of food. Beyond being a mere sustenance, food emerges as the focal point that unites people from diverse backgrounds. No matter where disputes originate, they find resolution at the communal dinner table. While meals may be an amalgamation of various ingredients, what truly converges are the myriad human stories. Each dish becomes a reflection of distinct emotional states, mirroring the nuanced similarities between humans and the art of gastronomy.
Actor Erdal Erbaş as Horace Walpole
Ebru Cengiz Ergen, a Turkish screenwriter, artfully resurrects the essence of the English writer, art historian, and politician Horace Walpole on the silver screen. In “Yemek Türkiye,” Walpole endeavors to concoct a flavor destined to linger across generations—a poignant tribute to the memory of his mother, a force he deems as the “most powerful emotion” in his entire life. As time unfolds in parallel, two souls, driven by a shared ambition and having weathered their fair share of trials, eventually find their paths intersecting in the intricate tapestry of time.
Enter Rüya, the contestant who, having faced humiliation as the last-place finisher in Turkey’s most-watched cooking competition, seeks redemption by crafting a new culinary masterpiece. At Strawberry Hill, the convergence point of Horace and Rüya, the Englishman listens intently to Rüya’s tales, seeking the missing element to complete his culinary passion. Rüya, in turn, narrates a rich tapestry of dishes from Turkey, the world’s gastronomic capital, infused with a perspective that harmonizes human psychology and drama.
In “Yemek Türkiye,” the enchanting allure of English history seamlessly merges with the picturesque beauty of Turkey’s cities, creating a cinematic symphony that transcends borders and cultures, leaving an indelible mark on the canvas of storytelling.
İstanbul
Ankara
Bodrum
Kapadokya
Kahramanmaraş
Sivas
Bingöl
Gümüşhane
Diyarbakır
By: Sarah
News
Nicole Kidman Undone
Nicole Kidman’s filmography is awash with romances with younger men.
A Family Affair, which just premiered on Netflix, is her most recent.
Kidman plays a decorated writer in the throws of a creative blockage whose passions are re-awakened upon a surprise romantic encounter with her daughter’s boss (Zac Efron).
While this current film is lighter, her most compelling on-screen romantic roles feature dark fantasies with younger men.
In Stanley Kubrick’s final film, Eyes Wide Shut (1999), Kidman is married to Tom Cruise but finds herself undone by her desire to sleep with a young naval officer with whom she shared a single glance.
In To Die For (1995), she strikes up a sexual relationship with a young Joaquin Phoenix in order to manipulate him for a crime.
And in Birth (2004), Kidman develops a deep-rooted attraction to a ten-year-old boy who claims to be her dead husband, and the two share a bath.
Kidman stated:
“Movies that deal with uncomfortable subject matter will rarely be rapturously received because you’re dealing with things that don’t make people feel safe… they’re not a soothing bath.”
Kidman’s ability to push herself to the edge of human psychology is consistently magnetizing.
In A Family Affair, the stakes are much less grandiose, but there’s a great moment where Kidman, in the evening after the fanfare of being caught in bed with Efron has subsided, slinks up to her daughter and offers her whole heart:
“Went a little crazy. I’m allowed, right?”
It’s wonderfully raw in a way that only Kidman can deliver.
A Family Affair is currently streaming on Netflix.
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Matt Damon RIP and a Fake James Dean
James Dean died at 24 but soon, he will be able to read you a bedtime story.
That’s because ElevenLabs, a leading AI platform that has developed deep expertise in synthesizing the human voice, has struck a licensing agreement for the voices of:
- James Dean (d. 1955)
- Judy Garland (d. 1968)
- Laurence Olivier (d. 1989)
- Burt Reynolds (d. 2018)
Their estates have signed the agreements, and ElevenLabs now has full ability to exploit their voices for its Reader App, which reads articles, PDFs, newsletters or any other written content.
What do we gain by bringing back these screen legends from the grave?
AI does not resurrect the dead (although this documentary makes the argument); it is a digital simulacrum that devalues these great artists.
I want to hear the real Judy Garland sing “Over the Rainbow,” I want to listen as James Dean screams, “You’re tearing me apart” and I want to sit in rapture as Olivier delivers a Shakespeare monologue.
For the love of God, don’t make them read lesser works that they have not agreed to.
No matter how good AI gets, human connection with other humans is the very foundation of humanity, and as storytellers, we should never lose sight of that fact.
Liza Minnelli (Garland’s daughter), in her infinite sweetness, noted that:
“It’s exciting to see our mother’s voice available to the countless millions of people who love her. Through the spectacular new technology offered by ElevenLabs, our family believes that this will bring new fans to Mama, and be exciting to those who already cherish the unparalleled legacy that Mama gave and continues to give to the world.”
It’s not as if her mama’s voice is being used to promote derivatives of work in which she performed, e.g., Garland voicing a new introduction to The Wizard of Oz.
Instead, the great and mysterious voice behind the curtain will not be Garland’s but a machine. And these nefarious attempts by AI companies to inject themselves into every facet of our society, to exploit our cultural connections to beloved figures as a gateway drug to mass adoption of the technology, are poisonous.
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Brad Pitt’s Need For Speed
Brad Pitt thrives when things around him move quickly.
He excelled at pouring out his soul while flying through space in Ad Astra (2019), tuning out while cruising through LA in Once Upon a Time in the West (2018), and enduring an identity crisis while speeding across Tokyo in Bullet Train (2022).
But Pitt has an immense ability to slow down time.
Look no further than his latest film, F1, which just dropped a teaser trailer.
Here’s the official synopsis:
Follows a Formula One driver (Pitt) who comes out of retirement to mentor and team with a younger driver.
The most cinematic moment of the trailer is not the glorious cinematography fueled by the high-octane next-gen camera system by director Joseph Kosinski (Top Gun: Maverick) but the moment at the end when the camera zooms into Pitt’s stolid face, locked into the race at 200 mph.
What we unlock in this stillness is the reflection of ourselves in his character– we project onto Pitt ourselves and lock into the race.
Reflecting on a similar style of performance in Ad Astra, Pitt stated:
“I see this as very still, and I want to see how much truth and honesty can read on camera, can resonate.”
While this style of performance is a far cry from where Pitt started off with megawatt characterizations as a prophetic lunatic in 12 Monkeys (1995) or a cynical mastermind in Fight Club (1999), they’re just as compelling.
It’s the next gen of Pitt, and we have much more to look forward to.
F1 opens June 27, 2025.
Nicole Kidman Undone
Matt Damon RIP and a Fake James Dean
Brad Pitt’s Need For Speed
WSA Film Music Composition Contest 2022: Young composers to score an excerpt from Murnau’s ‘Nosferatu’
Jelmoli is Official Co-Partner of the Zurich Film Festival
