Bells from the Deep
Directed by: Werner Herzog
Running time: 60 minutes
Germany, United States, 1993
Among the issues discussed in Young Turks is the emergence of different kinds of nationalism based on traditional and religious values in response to globalization.
In a way, the religious upheaval in 1990s Russia was also a reaction to the globalization processes. Werner Herzog's Bells from the Deep looks into the decisive moment in the country’s history that followed the end of communism and saw a rapid proliferation of various sects trying to fill the ideological vacuum of the time.
Herzog's documentary explores various beliefs and mysticisms that have spread in post-Soviet Russia: Eastern Orthodoxy, shamanism among the indigenous people of upper Yenisei, belief in the healing property of holy water or water charged by Allan Chumak, and belief in the extraordinary properties of the lake where the legendary city of Kitezh rests (which became a pilgrims’ destination). A mystic named Yuri Tarasov, who claims to be the new incarnation of Jesus, also appears throughout the movie.
Bells from the Deep is based on the director’s interviews with representatives of different communities—the viewer will find a similar anthropological approach in Young Turks.
Let’s Sin
Directed by: Onur Urlu
Running time: 110 minutes
Turkey, 2014
Let’s Sin offers an ironic critique of the religious trends in Turkish society, which the film posits lean closer to fundamentalism every year.
Looking into the issues connected with religion in a globalized world, the film resonates with İştar Gözaydın’s talk for the Education Program accompanying the exhibition. Onur Urlu’s film is a detective story with elements of a dark comedy—a genre that one could hardly call popular in Turkey. In equal parts critical and entertaining, this fast-paced thriller and box-office hit offers a contemporary view of Islam.
When a Muslim gets killed during prayer in a small mosque, its imam, suspected by the police, starts his own investigation. Salman Bulut’s life radically changes: instead of playing chess and making music, the self-taught detective delves into his investigation, taking a closer look at the life of local communities and witnessing corruption, turf wars, secrets inherited from the past, and even a love story.