demet-ykuday Review of Yahsi Bati

Yahsi Bati (2009)

You will love it if you are smart enough and you are from Turkey:)

[9/10 · 27 November 2010]

I don't know what people expect from a comedy movie. Like one of the reviews says; should it be dark? should it give an important message? should be ironic? should it make fun of certain things? should it be about human mind, or human beings at all? No!! Definitely no! I cannot say I liked other comedy movies of Cem Yilmaz except "Hokkabaz" if you consider it a comedy. I am a fan of his stand-up shows, I really like the things that he makes fun of and the way he makes fun of those things. When I watched "GORA" and "AROG", I couldn't find them smart although he is a very smart guy. But, this movie is different:) You must be from Turkey to understand everything. There are other things that people not from Turkey will find funny and interesting, but in order to laugh - I mean, really laugh- you must know how Turkish people, especially people in 30s, perceive certain concepts in American culture. I always thought that those who really like Cem Yilmaz's style are somehow familiar from the world that he is from, i.e., with a certain level of education, familiar with previous work as a cartoonist or similar works. This movie is definitely his work; smart, funny in his style.. No messages, no irony (at a serious level at least).. You will laugh and laugh only. It is all about the cliché; the things about America that my generation in Turkey talks, laughs, or thinks, the things in American culture that seem different to us or we had a hard time to understand. It is not making fun of American culture or anything. It is making fun of how he perceives things. But you should be careful, as one of the other reviews says, there are a lot of funny stuff and it is difficult to catch all.