ReaderKenka
Let's be realistic.
AutCuddly
Great movie! If you want to be entertained and have a few good laughs, see this movie. The music is also very good,
Murphy Howard
I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.
Radu_A
Since I got to live in Turkey once for a year out of romance, I can honestly say that I love the place. I learned the language and developed an intense taste for Ezogelin and the ingenious music of Mercan Dede, Aynur Doğan and Ogün Sanlısoy. I got to know that the greatest poet of the 20th century - Nâzım Hikmet - was from Turkey. And I got to know that the one issue you cannot talk about is the Armenian genocide. One meets a teacher of English in Ankara or a martial arts instructor in Fethiye, one talks to Kurdish musicians in Diyarbakir or a CalState-educated engineer in Istanbul, and always encounters the same all-encompassing culture of denial – even though there is no discrimination against Armenians today, who have an active cultural life. However this is supposed to be a review. "The Cut" is the fictional story of Nazaret Manoukian's unlikely survival of being pressed into the Turkish army, where he works in road construction. Eventually, the Armenian men are forced to either convert to Islam or die. The man assigned to kill Nazaret just stabs his throat, piercing his vocal cords and turning him mute – which is what the title alludes to. Nazaret finds shelter with an Arab and works in his tannery. After the war is over, he learns that his twin daughters are still alive, and embarks on a long journey across the world to find them.Alas, what was designed by director Faith Akin to kindle a discussion of the Armenian genocide and was intended as a conclusion to his master pieces "Head On" (2004) and "The Edge of Heaven" (2007) is a failure. As noble as Akin's intentions are, the ingenuity and acting presence of his previous films is gone. Tahar Rahim is decidedly miscast for the main role, as brilliant as he might have been in "A Prophet" or "The Past". He is much too young and plays the part in a vacant, uninvolved manner. Ironically, Simon Abkarian, who would have been perfect, appears in a small supporting role. The horrors of the genocide, while shown in part, are actually downplayed so as not to completely offend Turkish viewers – which did not work at all and did not shelter Akin from intense criticism. For Western viewers, the imbalance between the rather short wartime story – which is of principal interest – and the long, long, loooong journey of the main character to find his daughters makes the film a bore. Were the approach to the genocide less timid, the weakness of the acting and script would be forgivable. But as it is, "The Cut" is nothing more than a interesting failure; a failure well worth seeing to understand how difficult a subject the Armenian genocide still is, but not worth seeing as a film. Hopefully, one day someone will find the courage and budget to adapt "The 40 Days of Musa Dagh" by Franz Werfel, the greatest and most inspiring story about this subject, published on the eve of Hitler's rise to power and a terrifying reminder of the shape of things to come back then and now.
jakob13
It has taken a certain courage for Akin Faith, a Turk, to make 'The Cut', a tale of wandering of an Armenian in the aftermath of the Armenian genocide a century ago in the twilight hours of the Ottoman Empire. It also helps that Akin doesn't live in Turkey, but Germany, which spares him of a danger to his life were in Turkey. Technically, the film is well shot, but, alas, too long as Nazarat Moonogian takes up the pilgrim's staff to find his twin daughters. As Nazarat (Nazareth), Akin chose well: the Cesar winning actor Rahim Tahar, who does a yeoman's job as the wandering Armenian, as he goes from Syria to Lebanon then Cuba to Minneapolis and finally to the snow driven plains of North Dakota to find his daughter. As his name implies he is the embodiment of a Christian hero who has suffered much, for like his namesake, he is the branch of family that although disfigured by a Turkish massacre, he remains rooted in the soil of his determination and his ethnicity that is still capable of bearing fruit and surviving. 'The Cut' is a cinematic thanksgiving of survival, grit and determination to withstand the vagaries of Turkish prejudice. And, it is to Akin camera that honesty in dealing with a genocide which even today Turkey denies.
Ender Yemenicioglu
I should say Faith Akin is currently one of the most important directors from Germany of Turkish descent. He brought a fresh spirit to German and Turkish film scene. He shows also great courage with the theme Armenian Genocide. He explains a personal story, but also takes a step to the Armenians from Turkish side, and try to say "we understand your suffering." Regrettably that is enough to be excommunicated from Turkish community, because it is still a taboo to talk about Armenian problem in such a way. It is a pity that he missed such a great chance to create a good film with his humanistic intentions. Most of the scenes feel like staged, acting is mostly average. The main problem with the movie is the atmosphere. When I see a good movie, I forget that it is a movie and create an emotional connection with the characters. That is the most important thing for me as I evaluate a film. And it lacked completely for me. It could be the worst cinematographic work of Faith Akin till now. Still deserves above average from me.
TheNihalGursoyOfficial
This movie directed by Faith Akin really turned out to be different from what I expected. From some earlier research I had conducted, I was expecting a movie based on the story of the Armenian "genocide". However, the movie turned out to tell a story by itself. Of course, the Armenian "genocide" could be a story itself but this movie showed us something more. This movie really cut deep into the wound of a society.The Armenians have a wound and no one can deny this. No one can stand up and say that those people didn't suffer or that they were treated fairly in 1915. No historian should yell out that the Turks were just but the circumstances weren't. Maybe they can confirm this with their mind but not with their soul. And Armenians on the other side shouldn't be yelling out that the Turks have to pay for what they did. How can you make someone pay for what happened 100 years ago? Well then, the Germans should pay for what the Nazis did back in the World War II. Is that how things work around with history and the mistakes our ancestors have made in the past? Going back to the movie, it really has a touching story though it bores the viewer at some points. Not to mention some really disturbing scenes. The movie starts out kind of slow and emotional but as our main character Nazar develops; we get more interested in him than the historical bullshit going during the time. The movie achieves to capture the attention of the audience with a side story. Then that side story becomes the real story itself. A father searching for his lost daughters. The hardships and sacrifices he has to make. The emotional sufferings he has to go through. It all attracts the viewer. As a whole the movie is worth watching. One particular scene that I enjoyed the most is when an audience is watching a Charlie Chaplin movie. The scene was so ironic and filled with contrary emotions that it gave me the chills. The scene perfectly raises a purge of emotions. It also foreshadows the ending of the movie. So if you also want to be slightly cut by a misfortune event that cut many things from many people, I would say go for this movie. It is definitely worth getting cut for..
