Biyograficim
Bewildered (Şaşkın)

Bewildered (Şaşkın) (translated)

Movie · 2006 · 8 people

Şahin Alparslan directed the Turkish romantic comedy Şaşkın. Part of the youth-film tradition, it reached cinemas on November 10, 2006, and runs about 90 minutes, with love, radio and affection as its recurring themes. A late-night radio show sets the plot in motion, and what starts as an ordinary search for a girl becomes a dangerous adventure.

The hero is Mehmet (Onur Ünsal), a university student who is unhappy with his girlfriend. One evening he listens to a radio guest, Zeynep (Evrim Akın), who reacts sharply to the host's stock ideas about love and speaks frankly about her feelings. Mehmet is so moved that he resolves to find a girl he has never seen. His only clue is that Zeynep is an intern at a hotel. He sets off with his flatmate Çetin (Serdar Yeğin), but midway through the search they run into a serial killer wanted by Interpol on a red notice.

Alparslan wrote the screenplay with Doğu Yücel, Erol Avcı produced it, and TMC Film was the production company. Yasin Uslu served as cinematographer, and Tolga Kılıç and İskender Paydaş composed the music.

DirectorŞahin Alparslan
Production companyTMC Film

Reactions

You can pick up to 3 reactions.

Cast

Fatih Dönmez Fatih Dönmez Actor · born 1975 Tarık Onur Ünsal Onur Ünsal Actor · 41 years old Mehmet Evrim Akın Evrim Akın Actor · 47 years old Zeynep Serdar Yeğin Çetin Ahmet Mümtaz Taylan Ahmet Mümtaz Taylan Actor · 61 years old Ali Rıza Selin Demiratar Selin Demiratar Actor · 43 years old Pelin Serkan Keskin Serkan Keskin Actor · 48 years old Recai Serenay Sarıkaya Serenay Sarıkaya Actor · 35 years old Itır

Titles sharing this cast

Through different eyes

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

Şaşkın's most interesting move is trying to cross a familiar romantic-comedy setup with a serial-killer story. A search for love sparked by a radio show is the genre's usual charming opening; the real risk begins where that lightness turns into a dangerous adventure. In my view the film never fully merges the two tones: the comedy deflates the weight of the suspense, and the suspense spoils the ease of the comedy. Alparslan and Doğu Yücel's script is brave as an idea, but its structure becomes a story caught undecided between two genres. It deserves a note as an unusual attempt within the youth-film tradition; still, switching genres clearly calls for more careful construction.

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

It starts like a romantic comedy, but a serial killer enters the picture. That makes it the wrong choice for young children. For teenagers and young adults it can be a fun pick; university life, sharing a flat and the thrill of first love will feel close to them. If you watch as a family, know about that part of the story in advance and decide about the little ones accordingly.

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

Şaşkın offers a small slice of mid-2000s university life: sharing flats, internships and late-night radio shows. At a time when social media had not yet taken over daily life, radio was the most intimate way to form an emotional bond with a stranger, and the film makes that idea its starting point. Zeynep pushing back against the host's stock ideas about love is telling too; the female lead, so often silent in romantic comedies, is given a voice and an opinion here. Light as it is, the story tries to capture its generation's view of love through the everyday details of those years.

These are not reader reviews: they are short editorial takes written from different viewer perspectives with AI assistance. Reader reviews are below.

Reviews (0)

Log in Log in to write a review.

Comments