PROCESSING A COLLECTIVE TRAUMA
Qantara.de, Germany
Sept 11 2014
At this year’s Venice International Film Festival, the German entry
“The Cut” prompted discussion mainly because of its subject matter:
the genocide of the Armenians. Jochen Kurten and Oliver Glasenapp
spoke to the film’s German-Turkish director Fatih Akin
“The Cut” had its first screenings in the competition for the Golden
Lion. Following a preview for the international press, an evening gala
screening attracted guests from the worlds of culture, politics and
business. The women wore long evening dresses and the men tuxedos;
but what they spent two hours watching on screen didn’t quite fit
into the glamorous setting.
“The Cut” opens up a dark chapter in Turkish-Armenian history. Against
the backdrop of the Armenian genocide during World War I, in which
hundreds of thousands lost their lives, Fatih Akin tells the story
of a desperate Armenian father in search of his daughters. The film
is not sparing with scenes of brutality or with clear pointers to
the guilt of the murdering Turkish soldiers.
The audience reactions after the premiere were not all enthusiastic.
Whereas most of the journalists were disappointed, the invited
audience at the gala screening produced more mixed impressions,
with some members of the audience making positive noises about the
film. A number of viewers were clearly shaken by what they’d seen.
In the days after the premiere, Fatih Akin raced from one appointment
to the next, giving interviews. So what were these days after the
premiere like for him, and how did he feel about the initial reactions
from the Turkish media?
A politically important film
“Positive,” says Akin. For the most part, he says, he got very
enthusiastic feedback from Turkish columnists. Akin points out an
important distinction: “The columnists are very influential in Turkey.
They’re not as interested in cinematography; they’re not classic film
critics, they’re political columnists of all political stripes.”
Talking to the director, one thing becomes clear: the reception from
critics, the issue of the film’s aesthetic value, is one thing. The
other – and this seems more important to him at the moment – is the
film’s subject matter.
To this day, the Armenian genocide is still a taboo subject in Turkey,
making Akin’s optimism all the more surprising. He seems to be in no
doubt that his film will also be screened in Turkey soon. “The tenor
(of the columnists’ articles – ed.) is the same: this film can be
shown in Turkey without hesitation, it ought to be shown in Turkey,”
says Akin, describing the reactions from Turkish journalists. And
he’s very pleased: “That’s my greatest dream, for this film to be
shown on general release in Turkish cinemas.”
He had two main aims when making “The Cut”: “It was important to me
that Turkish viewers watching the film can identify fully with the
main character, who’s an Armenian.” That was his primary and most
important aim, he says. “The second goal was that Armenians watching
the film also identify with the Armenian hero and accept the film,
of course.” This is particularly important to him because he, the
director, is of Turkish origin. Fatih Akin’s parents emigrated to
Germany in the mid-1960s. He was born in Hamburg in 1973.
Not afraid of to grapple with thorny, controversial issues: Fatih
Akin’s latest film, “The Cut” tells a story from the Armenian
genocide. The picture above is a still from the film. It is the
director’s greatest wish that the film be shown in the country of
his parents’ birth, Turkey
A traumatic episode in Armenian history
“The film tries to process a trauma,” says Akin, taking on a
philosophical note. “What do we do as individuals when we’re
traumatised? We go to a psychiatrist, lie down on the couch and
analyse and reflect on our trauma.” If you’re lucky, he says, you
can free yourself from trauma this way and deal with it better. Akin
understands his film as an invitation to a large audience to process
the trauma of the Armenian genocide. “The same thing applies to an
individual as to a collective.”
Akin felt encouraged by Armenians in the audience. After the gala
premiere, a number of them said it was important that the subject has
been tackled at last. And the film’s Armenian actor Simon Abkarian
said at the press conference: “This is the film we Armenians have
been waiting for.”
How does Akin deal with critics’ objections that the film has dramatic
weaknesses and couldn’t decide whether it was an historical-political
drama or a genre movie? He doesn’t think people should categorise his
work as a straightforward political film about the Armenian genocide.
“I don’t actually know what genocide is,” says Akin. “What’s the
correct genre for it? What are the means? Can a film ever do justice
to it?” If you only want to find out about the genocide, he says,
you’re probably better off making a documentary.
He has told a story that begins during the genocide, but which is also
“a tragedy, an adventure, a Western, a drama, an epic”. That was what
he was striving for from the very outset: “I had to tell a story,
an everyday story, a simple story.” He made a deliberate decision
to stick to a single individual’s fate, “as cinematographically and
conventionally as possible”. This popular approach will help “The Cut”
at the box office – in Germany, at least.
But will that be the case in Turkey as well? Is he afraid of threats
from nationalist circles? Akin previously received threats when he
was planning a film about the murdered Armenian journalist Hrant
Dink. In the end, he had to abandon the project. But he doesn’t let
that bother him when it comes to “The Cut” and possible box-office
release in his parents’ country of birth.
“Why should I be afraid?” he asks. “That’s what I want most of all.”
Perhaps, however, he’s not quite as sure as he seems. After all, he
admits that Turkish cinema owners who might one day show “The Cut”
would be putting themselves in a difficult situation.
Jochen Kurten/Oliver Glasenapp
http://en.qantara.de/content/fatih-akins-film-about-the-armenian-genocide-processing-a-collective-trauma