The lonely male lead returns in 'Saç'

Minimalist writer and director Tayfun Pirselimoğlu’s award-winning ‘Saç’ (Hair) is the latest in a string of Turkish movies featuring a dysfunctional and lonely man at its center. It is the final film in the director’s trilogy exploring death and conscience

The row of shops with wigs and hair extensions in their windows is a familiar sight for many who pass through Tarlabaşı on their way to the heart of Istanbul, Taksim. For many, wigs are synonymous with Tarlabaşı, a run-down neighborhood where migrants, Turkish and non-Turkish, live in what is a hostile atmosphere for many.

Many pass by the shops riding in a taxi, catching a quick glimpse of the wigs and hair extensions, then forget the bizarre scene once the stores are out of sight. Writer and director Tayfun Pirselimoğlu’s award-winning Saç (Hair), however, takes one of these shops and puts it front and center.

Using his now-trademark minimalist style, Pirselimoğlu delves into one of those small shops marked by decay and gloom, as well as the life of the man who seems to be one with the shop. Hamdi (Ayberk Pekcan) is a lonely man who doesn’t seem to tire of silently staring out his window at the prostitute on the street and chain smoking. It’s highly probable that she’s one of his regular customers.

Click here for full review (Hürriyet Daily News)