Biyograficim
Eski Silah

Old Gun (Eski Silah) (translated)

Movie · 1989 · 3 people

The 1989 Turkish action-adventure film Eski Silah ("Old Gun") was directed, produced and edited by Melih Gülgen, who co-wrote the script with Cüneyt Arkın. A Gülgen Film production shot in color on 35 mm, it runs about 72 minutes. Showdown, revenge and the mafia drive the story.

The story follows three old friends who were once counted among the underworld's notable tough guys. Over time their paths split: one retired into seclusion, one landed in prison for his crimes, and the third is still a leading name in that world, living on as a mafia boss. Kemal, the one in prison, escapes and picks his old friend Murat as the place to hide; Murat is played by Cüneyt Arkın. When the mafia boss demands that Kemal be handed over, the three friends turn against each other and a bloody conflict begins. Murat loses his friend and his family in the fighting and goes after his former companion.

Cüneyt Arkın stars, with Yıldırım Gencer, Diler Saraç, Kadir Kök, Mehmet Samsa and Abdullah Kurt also in the cast. The cinematographer is Serdar Servidal. Toron Karacaoğlu dubbed Cüneyt Arkın and Devrim Parscan dubbed Yıldırım Gencer.

DirectorMelih Gülgen
Production companyGülgen Film

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Cast

Cüneyt Arkın Cüneyt Arkın Actor · died at 84 Yıldırım Gencer Actor · died at 68 Diler Saraç

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Through different eyes

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

Showdowns, revenge, the mafia and three old tough guys whose paths have split: every ingredient of the genre is here. A running time of about 72 minutes is a good sign that the film gets straight to the point with no room for long interludes. Murat going after his former friend after losing his friend and his family sets up the tension you expect from an eighties revenge picture. It promises a bloody conflict, so it is for those who like that kind of hardness.

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

Melih Gülgen directed, produced and edited the film and co-wrote the script with Cüneyt Arkın, which may signal a consistent vision as much as the lack of an outside eye. Three old friends scattered in different directions over the years is a starting point rich in dramatic potential: one retired into seclusion, one in prison, one a mafia boss, three separate fates. Yet roughly 72 minutes is rather short to give those three characters depth. The weight of friendship and betrayal risks being handed over to the mechanics of revenge, and the idea ends up richer than its execution.

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

Even the film's title carries a certain sadness: an old gun, meaning ageing tough guys and a friendship left in the past. Cüneyt Arkın coming to the screen with this theme at the end of the eighties is a meaningful coincidence for an eye that grew up with him. The tension between loyalty and betrayal is a moral test Yeşilçam has always cared about. Yet the mafia stories of the eighties rarely carry the neighbourhood ethics and warmth of the old tough-guy films, and this one also stays on the dark, hard side.

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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