37. Benden Ne Olur; movie review

 

BENDEN NE OLUR

Cert 12A

114 mins

BBFC advice: Contains infrequent strong language

After a rather splendid Sunday in north London, we settled down for the focus of our trip - Hazal Kaya as a rom-com heroine in Benden Ne Olur.

Murat Senoy's movie translates as Looking For Me and that is what Dakota Johnson-lookalike Kaya's rather self-obsessed character, Sertab, attempts to do throughout the film.

In other words, she is trying to find a direction to her life because she is jobless, loveless and now homeless, having been kicked out by her sister (Nur Fettahoglu).

The first things is to try to get a position and ,after a few comical interviews, she ends up marketing a family-run restaurant.

Then she nails an apartment in a block on the edge of Istanbul.

All that remains is for her to find a boyfriend who ticks all her rather precise boxes and it is this chase for love which is the basis for Senoy's movie.

It follows Sertab as she falls for a TV star (Onur Tuna) and consistently mucks up chances to be with him.

Her overwrought reaction to him also causes fall-out on her work and her relationships with her pals.

Meanwhile, she seeks constant advice from her imaginary friend who just happens to be real-life popular Turkish TV presenter Enis Arikan.

I have to admit that this type of film would rarely be my cup of tea but Kaya has an impish allure which dragged me on to her side.

Benden Ne Olur is packed with pretty people having a good time and elicited a few chuckles from Mrs W and me and more from the young folk sitting behind us at Wood Green Cineworld.

It is frivolous but fun.

Reasons to watch: Amiable rom-com

Reasons to avoid: Will be too sickly for some

Laughs: Chuckles for us, laughs for others in the audience

Jumps: None

Vomit: Yes

Nudity: None

Overall rating: 6/10

Did you know? In 2021, Enis Arikan began presenting his own talk showon Turkish television, called  @Enis Arıkan

The final word. Hazal Kaya: "When I first read the book, I thought what a sweet movie it would be. It turns out that at that time, the rights had already been taken by Medyapim. After giving Aslı (writer) some false ideas about who would play Sertab for a while, I said "Actually, I would like to play her" and the process started." Hurriyet.com

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