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The American (Amerikalı)

The American (Amerikalı) (translated)

Movie · 1993 · 8 people

Comedy meets action and crime elements in Amerikalı ("The American"), a Turkish film from 1993. Şerif Gören directed and co-produced. Starring Şener Şen, it tells of a dollar billionaire who returns home after many years away. The film, about 92 minutes long, passed the one-million-viewer mark on release and is cited as one of the few Turkish productions to do so after Arabesk (1989).

Şeref once landed in prison, found a way to escape and made his way to America, the "land of dreams." In twenty years he grew too rich to count his fortune, and he was known there as "Şeref the Turk." In a cowboy hat and Dallas-style boots, he comes back to Turkey to avenge an old betrayal, only to find the country a tangled "Little America." While looking for Melek, a figure from his past, he lands in an extraordinary adventure in which sex and violence run together. Şener Şen plays Şeref and Lale Mansur Melek; Taner Barlas is Hamit, Eray Özbal a journalist, İhsan Bilsev the police chief and İlteray İlter a police detective.

Ümit Ünal, Şerif Gören and Baran Seyhan wrote the screenplay. Mine Vargı co-produced for Filma Cass and Anadolu Filmcilik. Volkan Gücer composed the music and Erdoğan Engin was the director of photography.

DirectorŞerif Gören
Production companyFilma Cass, Anadolu Filmcilik
The American (Amerikalı) The American (Amerikalı) The American (Amerikalı)

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Cast

Şener Şen Şener Şen Actor · 84 years old Seref 'The Turk' Taner Barlas Taner Barlas Actor · 79 years old Hamit Lale Mansur Lale Mansur Actor · born 1956 Melek İhsan Bilsev Police chief Ilteray Ilter Police detective Sırrı Elitaş Haluk Bilginer Haluk Bilginer Actor · 72 years old Melih Çardak Kamil

Also in the cast: Eray Özbal (Journalist)

Titles sharing this cast

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Through different eyes

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

For those who love Şener Şen from his warm popular comedies, Amerikalı is a somewhat different stop. Şeref returning home in a cowboy hat and boots is a fun idea, but the film turns into a rough adventure that mixes comedy with sex and violence. For an eye looking for the clean, heartfelt humor of the older films, the blend can feel scattered and crude. Still, the fact that it drew over a million viewers on release is a reminder of how strong Şener Şen's bond with audiences was.

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

Amerikalı's most interesting idea is a man coming back after twenty years to find Türkiye turned into a kind of Little America. Through Şeref's cowboy hat and Dallas-style boots, the film pokes fun at early-1990s Türkiye's fascination with money and the American way of life. The figure of the man who got rich in the land of dreams and came home can also be read as a comment on the strange relationship returning emigrants have with their homeland. For anyone interested in the changing urban and consumer culture of the period, it is a valuable time capsule.

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

A billionaire coming home for revenge, a police chief, a detective and a journalist: Amerikalı has all the ingredients of a crime caper. To me Şeref's cowboy swagger gives the story a western flavor. But the main vein is still comedy; anyone expecting hard-edged suspense or big action scenes may be a little disappointed. For those who want to see Şener Şen in the middle of the action, it is a different taste.

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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