O Festival dos Trovadores

Brilliant acting, pitch perfect dialogue! Not a film for those who crave action-packed scenes, but rather for those who appreciate an in-depth portrayal of a wounded relationship, in this case between musician father and attorney son. The Turkish music and stunning, stark landscapes provide an amazing backdrop to this novel road film featuring two people in a car for most of it. It's a tour de force, keeping the viewer engaged in a 90-minute or so conversation. Along the way as the car journeys to some small towns, we learn in stunningly economical but evocative scenes about the father's past, with a subtlety that totally eludes even the most serious Hollywood films. That is just part of the magic of Ozcan Alper's directing.