Gülizar

Twenty-two-year-old Gülizar (Ecem Uzun) was raised in a loving if strict Turkish home full of taboos and expectations for women and men alike. Longing to experience what lies beyond the only world that she and the women around her have ever known, Gülizar believes her forthcoming marriage and the promise of a new beginning over the horizon will herald a brighter future. Betrothed to her beloved Emre (Bekir Behrem), she is eager to leave behind her family and her homeland for Kosovo. Gülizar’s fairy tale, however, tragically turns into a nightmare when she is sexually assaulted en route.

There’s seemingly little that can be done to obtain justice and, with wedding preparations in full swing, Gülizar’s aspirations for happiness appear further and further away. Yet, secrets are hard to keep in close-knit societies. Moreover, there’s a veil between Gülizar’s past and present self, and she cannot find a moment of peace as the nuptials approach. The young bride suffers in silence, navigating a claustrophobic maze as she begins to suspect the assailant is among the guests.

Following the short films The Apartment (2018) and Cemile (2021), Gülizar is the courageous debut feature of writer-director Belkıs Bayrak. Bayrak’s vision for her protagonist as she struggles in the aftermath of the attack is as precise and assured as her filmmaking. Told through the gaze of a woman yearning for her own internal locus of control, Gülizar delves into the complexities of trauma, societal expectations, and the universal search for self-discovery and determination, which ― despite all the obstacles ― is the only way forward.

DOROTA LECH

Content advisory: themes of sexual violence