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20 Minutes (20 Dakika)

20 Minutes (20 Dakika) (translated)

TV Series · 2013 · 18 people

Ay Yapım made the Turkish action drama 20 Dakika (20 Minutes), which started on Star TV on January 1, 2013, and ended on June 27, 2013, after 25 episodes of 90 minutes. The script was taken from the American film The Next Three Days and adapted by Kerem Deren and Pınar Bulut.

Ali and Melek Halaskar are happily married and live in peace with their children. One day the police storm in and take Melek (Tuba Büyüküstün), a pastry cook, to prison, accused of a murder and of injuring an important politician's son. Her husband Ali (İlker Aksum) tries to prove her innocence and get her out of jail, while the investigator played by Fırat Çelik gathers evidence to reach the truth. The central question is whether Melek really committed the crime.

Serdar Işık directed the first five episodes; when Kerem Deren said the script was not reaching the screen as intended, Ali Bilgin took over. Toygar Işıklı wrote the theme and all the music. Announced as a 30-episode project, it ended at episode 25. Sold to 30 countries in its first two months, it later aired in France on Novelas TV and in Serbia in 2019, and a Persian dub ran for 59 episodes.

DirectorSerdar Işık
Production companyAy Yapım
NetworkStar TV

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Cast

Begüm Akkaya Begüm Akkaya Actor · 35 years old Zeliha Başeski Burak Yörük Burak Yörük Actor · 31 years old Defne Kayalar Defne Kayalar Actor · 51 years old Günay Karacaoğlu Günay Karacaoğlu Actor · 55 years old Kimya Gökçe Aytaç Kimya Gökçe Aytaç Actor · 37 years old Miray Akay Miray Akay Actor · 26 years old Murat Prosçiler Murat Prosçiler Actor · 50 years old Kerim Solmaz Müjde Uzman Müjde Uzman Actor · 42 years old Kuzgun (Umut Bilaloglu) Nilay Deniz Nilay Deniz Actor · 33 years old Perihan Ünlücan Perihan Ünlücan Actor · 42 years old Tolga Sarıtaş Tolga Sarıtaş Actor · 35 years old Tuba Büyüküstün Tuba Büyüküstün Actor · 44 years old Melek Halaskar Ushan Çakır Ushan Çakır Actor · 42 years old Özgür İlker Aksum İlker Aksum Actor · 55 years old Ali Halaskar İpek Bilgin İpek Bilgin Actor · 70 years old Süreyya Gürok Metin Çekmez Metin Çekmez Actor · died at 76 Necmettin Solmaz Bülent Emin Yarar Bülent Emin Yarar Actor · 65 years old Kedi (Mesut Bilaloglu) Fırat Çelik Fırat Çelik Actor · 45 years old

Titles sharing this cast

Through different eyes

Action & Thriller Fan Puts pace, tension and set pieces first; little patience for slow drama.

20 Dakika has a killer setup: a husband trying to get the wife he believes innocent out of prison, and an investigator gathering the evidence. The tension starts early, and the question of whether Melek really did it pulls you from one episode to the next. İlker Aksum carries the story as a desperate but stubborn husband. The only problem is that the 90-minute episodes sometimes run longer than they need to. Still, a good pick if you like suspense.

Series Binger A series devotee tracking character arcs, cast chemistry and season pacing.

20 Dakika is a single season of 25 episodes, and that short life is both a strength and a weakness. A strength, because the story is never stretched: once Ali and Melek's happy marriage collapses overnight, the chemistry between İlker Aksum and Tuba Büyüküstün hooks you from the first episodes. The investigator played by Fırat Çelik adds a second line of tension. The weakness is that a show announced at 30 episodes ended at 25, and the final stretch feels a little rushed. Still, it works well as a short, intense watch.

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

20 Dakika adapts the American film The Next Three Days into a series, which creates a tough structural problem: spreading a feature film's suspense across 25 episodes of 90 minutes each. Kerem Deren and Pınar Bulut's adaptation tries to keep the central question alive, namely whether Melek is guilty, but as the long running times get filled, the tension often slackens into padding. The switch from Serdar Işık to Ali Bilgin as director after the first five episodes, and the writer's remark that the script was not reaching the screen as intended, point to a difficult production. Toygar Işıklı's music is the most solid element, holding the atmosphere together consistently. The result is a flawed but intriguing experiment.

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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