The Chaos Class Failed the Class

Before I start, a little background info; The Hababam series were (are) repeated so many times on television that it has become known to everyone in Turkey. In fact, the comedy's from the 70's made a major impact in the following Turkish comedy history.

Shortly the movie is about a class of slackers, all boys who don't study and are constantly trying to do all kinds of pranks or trying to escape out of the dormitory etc. In this Hababam the whole class actually fails the exams, and the school is threatened to be closed.

Compared to western standards this movie can be seen as a normal family comedy, but the thing what makes it really good is the individual contribution/improvisation of the various actors (whom became one of the greatest of the Turkish comedy history). There is given some decent amount of freedom to the actors to give their own flavor to it. And I think the actors did an excellent job doing this, especially Kemal Sunal and Sener Sen, because of this there are a lot of small very funny scenes throughout the whole movie, which made the movie very enjoyable, rich and therefore re-watchable.

This movie in particular has something special to it, not only because most people watched this movie over and over since their childhood, but also because of the jokes and it also gets a bit more serious in the end. I think this movie is rooted deep to a lot of people, and each time when you watch it this movie brings back nice memories.

I had this movie on my radar since it was (recently) #124 in the IMDbTop 250. I've seen all of the top 125 except for 3 others. These "top" movies are from many cultures and in many languages but this is one of the worst I've ever seen. It's from 1975 so maybe it brings back fond memories for people in the Turkish community (there appear to be other movies in this vein). I'm guessing there might have been an online effort to boost its IMDb rating.

I hope this doesn't offend people who truly like this film, but I see nothing positive about its impact on humanity. On the negative side: the "high school student" male actors average age (at production time) is probably 32-40+ while the two female actors are age appropriate with the teacher actress a beautiful young twenty-something. Overall, the humor was extremely childish and, with the elderly students, seemed truly immature and boorish. It seemed to be a poorly edited sequence of skits with no real purpose. The behavior towards the new teacher (by students and staff) is inexcusable, even for the mid-70s.

Unless you are really into this cultural genre or have some desired historical "need" for this movie, I recommend skipping it altogether.

Hababam Sinifi is basically a movie based on the novel by Rifat Ilgaz, telling the story about a class of lazy high school pranksters. The movie just presents the most entertaining moments of high school years; which we have all been there once, and feel deep down a nostalgia for the days when life was fun and we were teenagers, going only after fun and entertainment. Cheating in Literature exams, smoking in the mens room, playing hookey from school for a football game; those were the best days of our lives. While the movie is brilliantly and incredibly funny; it contains some heart breaking emotional moments as well.

I can easily say that this movie is by far the best movie ever made in Turkey, and it is a must-see for everyone who has been to high school and now a middle-ager. While it contains some local cultural jokes here and there, the story told is highly universal, as was "Cidade de Deus" or, say, "Trainspotting". And although it is 30 years old, it is a story that never gets old.

All in all, THIS movie is the greatest movie of all times. And if you ever get a chance to see it, do not miss it. Or ask some Turkish friend about it, and you'll find out that everybody knows it, has seen it zillions of times, knows every scene by heart, and just plain loves it. 9,3 overall IMDb rating is no mistake.

My rating: 10/10

The film "Hababam Sinifi" (The Chaos Class) is a work by Turkish literary writer Rifat ilgaz. In fact, Rifat ilgaz's work focuses on runaway and mischievous students in class, depicting their mischief and its consequences in his own style. However, what director Ertem Egilmez and his team have created is a magnificent comedy for Turkish cinema and Yesilcam. It wouldn't be wrong to say that it has also introduced some important actors to our cinema.

This movie always has a nostalgic feel to it.

This movie never gets old.