Steam: The Turkish Bath

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

Tired of his troubled marriage and his profession, an overly tense Italian businessman's life changes dramatically after he learns that an aunt has left him property in Istanbul. Francesco Alessandro Gassman(the son of internationally renowned actor Vittorio Gassman) arrives to the Turkish city hoping that he can take care of the matter swiftly and return to Italy. He is surprised to discover that the property is actually one of the last traditional hamams (old-fashioned bath houses) in Turkey. The lawyer in charge of the inheritance seems to dawdle and this frustrates Francesco who is not used to the slow pace of the neighborhood where the bath is located. But then the family that has been running the Turkish bath for his aunt, takes him in and Francesco gradually rediscovers a long-missing sense of family as he accustoms himself to Turkish culture. Matters become complicated though when the couple's daughter Fusun falls for Francesco, who discovers himself increasingly and disconcertingly interested in her darkly handsome brother Mehmet. The Italian decides to remain in Istanbul for a while to help restore the baths. The situation comes to a head when Francesco's wife arrives to make an announcement. The ensuing conflicts cause Francesco great upheaval, but they also lead him to grow in unexpected ways. Having spent two decades in Italy, Turkish-born filmmaker Ferzan Ozpetek brings a sense of realism in observing the cultural differences between Francesco and his adopted family. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Number of Discs: 1
• Features:
  • Scene access
  • Never-before-seen music video by director/composer Ferzan Ozpetek

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Cast:

  
       Alessandro Gassman - Francesco
       Francesca D'Aloja - Marta
       Carlo Cecchi - Oscar
       Halil Ergun - Osman
       Serif Sezer - Perran
       Alberto Molinari - Paolo

• Director:

  Ferzan Ozpetek

• Producer:

  Marco Risi, Maurizio Tedesco

• Screen Story:

  Ferzan Ozpetek

• Screenwriter:

  Ferzan Ozpetek, Stefano Tummolini

• Cinematographer:

  Pasquale Mari

• Composer (Music Score):

  Aldo De Scalzi, Pvio

• Editor:

  Mauro Bonanni

• Art Director:

  Virginia Vianello, Mustafa Ziya Ãœlkenciler

• Co-producer:

  Aldo Sanbrell, Cengiz Ergun

• Executive Producer:

  Paolo Buzzi, Ozan Ergun

• Costume Designer:

  Metella Raboni, Selda Cicek

• Sound/Sound Designer:

  Marco Grillo

• First Assistant Director:

  Gianluca Mazzella

REVIEW:

• This modest drama of cultural and family differences is worth viewing because its filmmakers portray their conflicts so subtly and specifically. The script intertwines its central polarities -- urban versus provincial, modern versus traditional, Italian versus Turkish, bisexual versus straight -- in such a way that the story could not take place with any other characters or in any other locale. European attitudes toward family life and sexual identity are integral to the interactions between Francesco (Alessandro Gassman), his wife Marta (Francesca D'Aloja), and the Turkish family that opens itself to them. Imagine, for instance, the shrill villainy that would be heaped upon the Marta character in a knee-jerk American coming-out-of-the-closet melodrama; here, though, she is treated as one of the family despite her estrangement from Francesco, and she in turn treats his homosexual inclinations almost no differently than a spouse would react to any infidelity. Indeed, there's a sense of detachment and world-weary resignation to these chic Italian characters that makes their transformations ring true when they're exposed to a slower, more contemplative way of life. The direction and cinematography may be workmanlike, and the plot twists sudden and unlikely, but, along the way, writer/director Ferzan Ozpetek makes his story sink in. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi