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Side by Side (Yan Yana)

Side by Side (Yan Yana) (translated)

Movie · 2025 · 5 people

Turkish comedy-drama Yan Yana, fully titled Soyut Dışavurumcu Bir Dostluğun Anatomisi Veyahut Yan Yana, was made in 2025. An adaptation of the 2011 French film Intouchables, it runs about 150 minutes. Haluk Bilginer and Feyyaz Yiğit share the lead roles. It is recognized as the first Turkish feature released in IMAX, and with around 620 million ₺ at the box office in 2025 it was the most-watched film of the year in Turkey.

As in the original, the story is about two very different men whose paths cross. A wealthy man living in luxury is paralyzed from the neck down after an accident and turns away from life. The young, energetic man he hires as his personal assistant, with an unconventional sense of humor, forms a bond with him that quickly outgrows the employer-employee relationship. Despite the class and cultural divide, the friendship reconnects the rich man with life beyond the limits of his wheelchair. Hatice Aslan, Bige Önal and Şevval Sam complete the cast alongside Bilginer and Yiğit.

Mert Baykal directed, with a screenplay by Baykal, Aziz Kedi and Feyyaz Yiğit. The producers are Tamer Başaran, Berent Baytekin and Muzaffer Yıldırım, the music is by Cem Öget and the cinematography by Serkan Güler.

DirectorMert Baykal

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Cast

Haluk Bilginer Haluk Bilginer Actor · 72 years old Refik Hatice Aslan Hatice Aslan Actor · 64 years old Lale Bige Önal Bige Önal Actor · 36 years old Figen Şevval Sam Şevval Sam Actor · 52 years old Şeyda Kubilay Penbeklioğlu Kubilay Penbeklioğlu Actor · 59 years old Yavuz

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Through different eyes

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

Yan Yana is a warm film the family can go to together. It tells of the friendship between a rich man left paralysed and the energetic young man who helps him. It aims to make you laugh and to move you. A man who has given up on life finding his way back is a lovely message. But at about 150 minutes, it may feel long for young children. It suits teens and grown-ups better.

Cinephile Looks at script, editing and directing choices; keeps a distance from formula films.

An adaptation of Intouchables, Yan Yana stays loyal to the original's proven formula, a choice that is both safe and limiting. The contrast between Haluk Bilginer and Feyyaz Yiğit is the film's engine, and that pairing makes a familiar story watchable again. But a running time of about 150 minutes is too much for a friendship comedy that needs a tight structure; some stretches feel like they are filling time rather than adding to the story. How much the adaptation brings of its own to the source is also open to debate. Being the first Turkish feature released in IMAX and the year's most-watched film explains the interest, but box office alone is no measure of cinema.

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

Seeing Haluk Bilginer and Feyyaz Yiğit side by side is a pleasure in itself; the meeting of a seasoned master and youthful energy brings warmth to the screen. A friendship that crosses class and cultural lines recalls our old Yeşilçam films that sat rich and poor down at the same table. Still, this is an adaptation, and it does not always carry the sincerity of a story grown from its own soil. That it became the year's most-watched film shows audiences still long for heartfelt stories that bind one person to another.

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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