ahradwan6 I was bored to death watching this movie, the movie makes the uncle as the bad guy who is bad and violent to the innocent girls, right? The answer will differ according to where are you from. If you're from Europe or America (The West) the girls did what any girl would do, playing with boys, sleeping with them, cheating virginity tests, lying and whatnot. but if you're from the east those exact things would be shameful for the girls and the family. but the film chose to portray the uncle as the bad guy and the girls did nothing wrong, but i think any sensible person would understand why the uncle had to do what he did.

kafkasmurat72 You'll see an orientalist Turkish director who alienates her surroundings to be seen positive in the west. And she knows sex sells. This movie is about sex, and white washing the western culture of sexism. You got it when politicians like European Union staff honors such a movie. Politicians ain't love art, they use it. This film makes western people proud by telling that only east has gender problem which is falsified by the film itself by showing a lot of teen legs to make it watchable.No art, no objectivism, a lot of sexism by the sexists.

avik-basu1889 'Mustang' consists of an overhead shot of Selma, one of the sisters in the film, lying on a bed wearing her wedding dress in the gynecologist's chamber with a bulb glowing beneath the sheet covering the lower abdominal regions of her body. This shot of a young girl who has already been forced to marry a complete stranger, now being forced to get her virginity tested on her wedding night visually summarises the whole film in the most succinct and powerful way possible. 'Mustang' is an uninhibitedly feminist tale that throws light on the evils of an oppressive and ultra conservative patriarchal society and how women in third world countries even now feel suffocated by this oppression.What in my eyes makes 'Mustang' special is that even though the film addresses a really important and relevant issue like oppression against women,the director Deniz Gamze Ergüven still manages to retain a spirit of sweetness and innocent intimacy between the sisters which gives us some respite from the atrocious and horrifying aspects of the other scenes in the film. Ergüven juxtaposes the horrors of the scenes depicting the oppression with moments like the opening scenes in the beach or the scene at the football stadium or the scene where Lale learns to drive. These moments have almost a fantasy fairy tale like quality to them as Ergüven using the fluid camera work and lighting, focuses completely on the faces of these girls having fun and expressing themselves during these scenes. It is because of the presence of these scenes epitomising the spirit of youth and sweet bonding between the sisters that the viewer becomes more and more angry with each succeeding scene where their liberties and freedom get intruded upon. A very important theme being explored in the film is the premature and forced loss of youth. We see the house become a 'wife factory' and a symbolic prison for the girls after the opening incident and see the sisters get married off one by one. Due to the way Ergüven spends her time in showing us the bond between these sisters, when they get married off one by one, we start feeling their absence in their home. The concept of a group of girls belonging to a conservative family will remind viewers of Sofia Coppola's 'The Virgin Suicides' although the perspective is different here. 'Mustang' showcases how suffocating a woman's life can be in the orthodox conservative societies in third world countries even in the 21st century. Just like Jafar Panahi's films, Ergüven shows us why the feminist movement advocating equality is still the need of the hour in the world and more so in developing countries like Turkey. Ergüven's camera movements reminded me of the camera movements in the films of the Dardenne brothers due to the extensive usage of hand-held camera. The way Lale gathers her inner strength to defy the customs and defy her family is also reminiscent of the moral awakening of Igor in 'La Promesse'. Ergüven with the help of her cinematographer uses lighting to create a fantasy like visual texture which goes with the tone set by her in much of the film. Along with all the technical elements, the maturity that Ergüven shows with the raw emotions in the film is astonishing for a first time director. The acting is naturalistic and good from everyone. But I will give special mention to Günes Sensoy who plays Lale.My only gripe with the film has more to do with an element in the screenplay than the direction of Ergüven. At a certain point in the film, it is revealed that uncle Erol is a pedophile and he was molesting the girls. I think this was completely unnecessary and it changes the way I look at certain aspects of the film and specially the character of the grandmother. I think this revelation makes the character of the grandmother more likable, but to some extent strips her character of some of the moral complications. Overall, I loved 'Mustang'. It is a film that not only showcases great direction and storytelling, but also deals with a very relevant issue with poignancy and power. Except one unnecessary element in the screenplay, I think the film is pretty brilliant and should be seen by people around the world.

SnoopyStyle Sisters Lale, Nur, Selma, Ece, and Sonay are orphans living with their grandmother. They play with the boys on a beach and rumors spread in the conservative Turkish village. Their uncle takes them for a virginity test. Despite passing the test, the girls are locked in the house and stripped of their modern influences. They are forced to learn to be conservative wives. The oldest Sonay sneaks out to be with her boyfriend. The girls want to go to the football match but is forbidden despite being a women only event. They sneak out but when they return, their grandmother makes the house a prison and works to marry each one off. As the noose is tighten, the girls dream of escaping to Istanbul.It's not really "The Virgin Suicides" although it does follow a story with similarities. It has the reality of religious culture. The ensemble cast is good with a naturalistic style. There is a slow build tension. The cinematic intensity is not high enough for some of the scenes. There is an escape but again the tension is not raised high enough. It's a solid drama especially for the relative newcomers.