Anatolian Leopard
World Cinema
•
1h 48m
Directed by Emre Kayis • Drama • With Uğur Polat, Ipek Türktan, Tansu Biçer • 2021 • 109 minutes
Fikret (Uğur Polat) is a melancholic divorcé who leads a lonely life. Dedicated to his work of 22 years, he is the director of Turkey’s oldest zoo.
Like much of the country, the institution is undergoing a process of privatization, but one obstacle stands in the way: its oldest inhabitant, the Anatolian leopard, an endangered species indigenous to the region and protected by law. Though boiling on the inside, Fikret keeps his brewing discontent at the sweeping conservative reforms bottled.
On New Year’s Eve, he finds himself paying a visit to the leopard, though he soon realizes his old friend is bereft of life. Determined to hide the inconvenient truth, Fikret and his assistant Gamze (Ipek Türktan) conspire to fake the leopard’s escape, setting in motion an absurd charade that inevitably turns the ensuing capture attempt into a three-ring circus while rousing Fikret’s long-buried idealism.
Director Emre Kayiş’s debut feature is a sharp metaphor for the contemporary Turkish state, challenging us to fight for what we believe in before it’s too late.
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