You don’t just watch MUSTANG. You watch it slowly unfold in front of you as it pulls no punches. MUSTANG is an emotional juggernaut that through its simple story, and the best direction of the year makes for one of the most intense and heartbreaking experiences of the year.
MUSTANG begins with five sisters playing a game with some boys on a beach. They return to their home only to be viciously attacked by the adults in their lives, and threats are thrown at them. We soon realize that they are all part of arranged marriages. The smallest of the sisters, Lale, starts to question this, and sees the oppression of the tradition.
The girls almost seem to be “picked off” as they get married, and go live with men that they don’t want to live with, much less be married to. Near the beginning of the film as we see the girls bonding, there’s the impending doom feeling to the futures ahead of them. But there is also happiness to the weddings, and this combined with the more sinister aspects of the productions make for an almost creepy tone that keeps you right on the edge of your seat.
The nuances found between the direction and screenplay in the piece are the most interesting, though. The house that the girls live in physically becomes more and more like a prison to them everyday, but it is also a metaphor for the free spirit that they had as women being caged. That is only one example, but understanding these touches are paramount to understanding what makes MUSTANG a great movie. Each one of these simple nuances show up telling you “They have to get out. They have to get out,” creating a rush of dramatic tension. The only way for the film to relieve that tension is to allow the girls to escape. Whether or not they do would make for a good film either way.
It is a triumph that the young actresses don’t let these nuances become too unsubtle. The naturalistic way they bond, and grow as women is conveyed beautifully. Güenes Sensoy is revolutionary as Lale, and the heart she brings to the film becomes one of its driving engines.
The cinematography is another driving engine. A more harsh filming style may have ruined the film, bringing everything that shouldn’t be to the surface, and burning out the audience. But director Deniz Gamze Erüven and cinematographers David Chizallet and Ersin Gok took their time to make every frame of the film as rich as the characters. This pays off allowing the softer aspects of the film to shine, and better encapsulates times when everything is more frightening boosting the film to even greater heights.
MUSTANG is a special film. It’s an almost perfect combination of compassion, intensity, and joy that blends into one of the most satisfying films of the year.
5 of 5 Stars
MUSTANG opens in St. Louis December 25th exclusively at Landmark’s The Tivoli Theater
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