SIFF 2008: Fighter
Turkey/Denmark 2007
Review by Asli Omur
Posted June
1, 2008
Danish born and raised, Ayse Erman, has come
to a fork in the road: continue with high school and move onto
medical school or become a kung fu fighter. The latter being the
root of her wildest dreams. She is an intense and fiery girl,
who, along with the stunning cinematography, defies Turkish
tradition. Ayse, played by the unforgettable Semra Turan, must
make choices that no one in her Turkish family can find
agreement in. The film highlights her experience as one big,
long bad day that never seems to end.
After a scuffle with a female bully at her karate school she
is referred by her instructor to practice at a professional kung
fu school. She is first rejected, but refuses to back down
claiming she “can be good,” and “will be good,” if only the
master give her a chance to prove herself. The trouble comes
when trying to convince her tough father that she wants to join
the class and fight girls -and boys. Despite his forbidding her
to continue with kung fu, she sneaks to class daily, gaining
strength and capitalizing on her fast ability to react. She
accidentally breaks cabinets as she practices in her kitchen
when her family has gone to bed. When she gets a black eye she
blames it on a door. A subtle romance blooms with her training
partner, Emil (Cyron Melville); a cross-cultural romance that
wreaks its own havoc. Her mother suggests husbands for her while
her father asks “Who will ever love a girl like you?” She is too
aggressive, too feisty for a Turkish marriage, he says.
When she is chosen as a fighter for her dojo
at a championship, she is unstoppable. Her out of body fight
scene with herself parallels her struggle between fighting
traditions and her desires. Her masters final words of “Be
true,” and “Look always in the eyes [of your opponent],” allows
her to face another one of her obstacles, fighting for the
championship title against a Turkish male friend connected to
her family that refused to fight her because she was a girl.
Ayse is relatable and yet a true fantasy.
She is no damsel in distress. When her brother is beaten up for
a misunderstanding with his fiancés family, Ayse comes to the
rescue. When her honor has been shattered, she retaliates. Her
anger towards discrimination makes her pop out of the screen
gracefully. Bits of unexpected humor come when asked where she
comes from, she responds, “North Copenhagen.”
Fighter is fast, athletic, set in
dark and wintery Danish locales to an energetic soundtrack. The
film has residue of Run Lola Run. Ayse is always running.
Her life never seems free from prying eyes.
Fighter does something no kung fu
film has ever done: a storyline revolving around a triumphant
Turkish heroine. Fighter like the other three Turkish
entries in the Seattle Film Festival this year, solely
illuminates the Turkish female perspective, a rare doing in
cinema.
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