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Kezban

Kezban

Movie · 1968 · 9 people

Orhan Aksoy directed the 1968 Turkish color drama Kezban and wrote it with Ahmet Üstel. Produced by Hürrem Erman's Erman Film, it is a color remake of Muazzez Tahsin Berkand's 1941 novel of the same name. Mike Rafaelyan shot it and Metin Bükey handled the music. It is a sentimental story of an Anatolian girl facing high society.

Ali Yolaçan, a well-known Istanbul contractor, learns from a letter from Gemlik that Hacer, whom he left behind twenty years earlier, has died and that he has a daughter named Kezban. Hiding the truth, he presents himself as a friend of her late father and brings her to his mansion in Suadiye. Kezban (Hülya Koçyiğit) is mocked for her clothes, manners and even her name; encouraged by her ally Fazıla, she studies at a French girls' boarding school and refines herself. Young doctor Ferit (İzzet Günay), about to be engaged to Ali's daughter Lale (Selma Güneri), grows interested in Kezban; the architect Faruk (Süleyman Turan) also takes an interest. Yusuf Sezgin and Muzaffer Tema are also in the cast.

Most actors were dubbed: Jeyan Mahfi Tözüm voiced Hülya Koçyiğit and Hayri Esen voiced İzzet Günay. The film begins and ends in Gemlik, visiting Istanbul and Bursa on the way, and Berkant sings its song.

DirectorOrhan Aksoy
Production companyErman Film

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Cast

Hülya Koçyiğit Hülya Koçyiğit Film actor · 78 years old Kezban İzzet Günay İzzet Günay Actor · 92 years old Ferit Selma Güneri Gülistan Güzey Actor · died at 59 Fazıla Muammer Gözalan Muammer Gözalan Actor · died at 76 Ziya Süleyman Turan Süleyman Turan Actor · died at 82 Faruk Muzaffer Tema Muzaffer Tema Actor · died at 92 Ali Aliye Rona Aliye Rona Actor · 1921 – 1996 Nazire Fatma Karanfil Actor · died at 72 Nilüfer

Also in the cast: Yusuf Sezgin

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Through different eyes

Yeşilçam Nostalgic A viewer raised on the classics, looking for warm storytelling and strong acting.

Adapted from Muazzez Tahsin Berkand's novel, Kezban tells one of Yeşilçam's favourite stories: a young girl from Anatolia tested in high society and making something of herself. For an eye raised on the classics, the warmth of these films lies in the good-hearted heroine's effort to keep her dignity. That most of the cast were dubbed, with Jeyan Mahfi Tözüm's voice standing in for Hülya Koçyiğit, may seem odd to today's viewers, but those voices are part of this cinema's memory too. The song sung by Berkant adds a flavour of its own.

History & Society Lens Asks about the period, the social background and what the work reflects.

Kezban explores the distance between the provinces and Istanbul high society through a young girl's story. That Kezban is mocked for her clothes, her manners and even her name reveals a social hierarchy in which a name alone can read as a class marker. Her schooling at a French girls' boarding school, meanwhile, reflects the idea that acceptance runs through a Western education; the film presents this as a story of rising up rather than questioning it. A wealthy father hiding his identity from the daughter he left behind twenty years earlier is also a telling detail about the period's ideas of family and reputation.

Family Viewer Asks whether the whole household can watch it; cares about humour and heart.

Kezban is a calm, emotional film the whole family can watch. The story revolves around love, jealousy and a secret kept by a father; there is no heavy violent theme. Older viewers tend to enjoy old melodramas like this. Children may find the old-fashioned storytelling and dubbed voices strange and may need a little patience. A fitting choice for a weekend afternoon with the grandparents.

These are not reader reviews: they are short editorial takes written from different viewer perspectives with AI assistance. Reader reviews are below.

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