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Kuma

Country: Austria, Language: German | Turkish, 85 mins

Gay | Drama | 2012

Director: Umut Dag
Writer: Petra Ladinigg
Producer: Veit Heiduschka

CGiii Comment

Religion & Tradition...aka, Secrets & Lies...and the misery they bring.

Rather than being anti-Islam, this is a look at women and how they promulgate their own inequality within the traditional family...upkeeping those ludicrous traditions for the sake of preserving man-made constructs: respectability and honour.

This is difficult viewing made easier by a genteel central performance. The cruelty on display is harrowing...what's more harrowing is the reluctance to change.

This is happening now...self-serving, selfish actions for the sake of societal acceptance.

Wake-up Islam - it's time to respect and honour all your members - not just the men.

Trailer...

The(ir) Blurb...

Ayse, a beautiful 19-year-old girl from the Turkish countryside, is chosen to be married to the handsome Hasan, son of formidable and house-proud mother Fatma, who resides in Vienna with her husband and six children. However, what soon becomes apparent is that Ayse is to be second wife to Fatma's husband. This tight-knit family go to great lengths to preserve traditional values, and although polygamy is illegal in Austria, Ayse is welcomed with warmth. Yet, her presence in a country whose language and culture is entirely foreign to her immediately marks her as an outsider. As Western societal norms and Muslim religious beliefs draw closer together in an ever diversifying family unit, tensions arise, resulting in an explosive stroke of fate. Umut DaÄY's mature feature debut is a rich tapestry of swirling emotions, suppressed desires, unspoken words and uncomfortable yet pressing social and political questions.