Edge of Heaven

It's been at least seven or eight years since the last time I saw this marvelous film, but having by chance stumbled on its listing here i took a look at the reader reviews and was generally heartened by their sensitivity and intelligence. The best way for me to sum up this film's quality is to put it very much on a par with another film of that period, The Lives of Others, which I believe to be the best film of the past 25 years. Anyone who knows it will know that to equate them is speaking as highly as one possibly could. about each. If anything this is the more unusual film. It certainly rewards the time spent in watching it.

Complex, intricate story of a German girl who falls in love with a female Turkish revolutionary and pays for this with her life. Ironically, her death frees the other girl from prison. The parallel story is that of a young professor whose father accidentally murders the mother of the Turkish girl. This character, played by Baki Davrak, is the the most sympathetic, and he crosses paths with all the others. Tragically, throughout the story the Turkish mother, a prostitute, is doing everything in her power to find her daughter, and the daughter is looking desperately for her mother. They never meet. Tuncel Kurtz (Maria Braun) plays the german girl's mother. This filmmaker made a bad movie before this, a bad movie after this, and his future is in doubt. But I consider Edge of Heaven ("The Other Side") a masterpiece.

I had watched this years ago when it came out and had won Cannes awards. Its story-telling style (and not so much the plot) had a profound impact on me then. I was delighted to see it was available on Prime video and I watched it again with great satisfaction once more. Great piece of cinema art.

This is a PG-13 movie if concerned regarding rating. I liked the acting and the script. There are many plot changes so it keeps the movie interesting. I enjoyed the scenes filmed in Turkey. I think they present a credible depiction of life in Turkey. But wasn't "wowed" by this movie and not sure I want to see it again. It involves 3 families that move between Turkey and Germany. All experience tragedy and how they cope with the family tragedy determines the direction of the movie.

THIS KIND OF MOVIE-MAKING SEEMS LIKE "LITERATURE" ON FILM AND I LOVE THIS KIND BEST. IT TAKES YOU AWAY AND BRINGS YOU INTO THE NOVEL, THE STORY, WITH THE PEOPLE ON FILM. I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS MOVIE BECAUSE IT WAS MORE LIKE AN EXPERIENCE THAN JUST ENTERTAINMENT. BRAVO!!! VERY MATURE ESPECIALLY THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE MOTHERS AND DAUGHTERS AND THE FATHER AND SON. VERY CLEAR, EVEN PRECISE, JUST ALL-AROUND REAL AND REVEALING. THANK YOU. GOOD JOB. -MO

There are a lot of films nowadays that use this fragmented interwoven storytelling structure. Some of those films really work, and others fall flat thanks to misapplied similarities and lack of depth in character development. `The Edge of Heaven' is compelling and affecting despite moments that seem too preposterous for their own good. Fatih Akin knows how to wrap this story around itself in a way that builds depth in areas that feel somewhat shallow. In other words, this is an example of a film working and then again, not working in nearly the same breath. The film tells three separate stories. One is of a man who is desperately trying to right the wrongs of his father, an elderly drunk who manhandles and accidentally kills a prostitute he tried to pull out of the gutter. Ashamed of his father's actions, this man goes out on a journey to find this dead prostitutes daughter. The second story is of that daughter, a political rebel who manages to escape Germany and is trying to find her mother when she meets and falls into a relationship with the naïve Lotte. Lotte's mother is not happy about this relationship, and she propels the final story, that of a woman attempting to pick up broken pieces of tragedy. All three of these lives collide in different ways, and yet no one knows of the importance of their union. I found the construction of the film to be a little convoluted in parts and a tad choppy in others, and yet I have a ton of respect for the approach taken to the film's conclusion and mostly that third `story', which is fleshed out beautifully in a few small moments. Overall, `The Edge of Heaven' is sincere enough to work, despite scenario flaws, but the film's opening story feels a bit forced when placed up against the second and third, and the lack of balance when portraying the amount of tragedy in one particular `circle' seemed off kilter at times. It just seems to be trying to say something a little harder than it should. And yet that final moment on the beach seems like such a marvelous way to conclude such a grisly tale.

We have been closely watching everything made by Fatih Akin in last a few years. This is one of his best. It is a very interesting story. Fatih Akin touches every taboo subject in Turkish culture and almost forces Turkish society to face with its controversial dealings. I recommend this film to anyone who wants to know more about Turkish/German cultural integrations and clashes.

The plot is believable and the characters well fleshed out. Like life, people are imperfect, random things happen and loose ends do not always connect. And if you like the music songs by Kazim Koyoncu is available on Amazon Music.