Customer Reviews

Lola and Billy the Kid [VHS]

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is one of the best films to come from Europe in quite some time. It has enough plots & characters for a miniseries: a romeo & juliet love story, incest, sex, violence, homophobia, compassion, family secrets, suspense, comedy galore, and a twist ending to boot. Basically, it is a social commentary about a group of Turkish young gay men trying to survive the bitter cold Berlin weather and the cold shoulder from their families & comunity. Yet the film is anything but depressing or preachy. It is instead a well written & directed powerful & beautiful story about commitment to oneself & to others. The bottom line: you will not be bored. There are so many wonderful things to recommend, including a hilarious star turn by Inge Keller (a cross between disdainful Dietrich & haughty Hepburn) as an exasperated, arrogant grad dame that, by itself, is worth the price of the dvd. The transfer is tack sharp with rich colors. The sound seems to fade in & out at times (I saw this on my computer). There are no extras as with most imports, only trailers for other films from the same outfit. Nevertheless, this is one to include in your collection right alongside 'Priest', 'Maybe, Maybe Not', and 'Longtime Companion.' Don't miss this one! You'll be watching it more than once!

Lola + Bilidikid (Lola and Billy the Kid) written and directed by the dynamic E. Kutlug Ataman is an immensely interesting view of the lives of Turks in Berlin. The many characters introduced at a seemingly random fashion all are woven in the loom of Ataman, becoming one connected tapestry of ethnic clashes, humor, drama, and intensely moving views of family and love. From the quiet moments at the beginning to the unexpected ending this film dazzles with color, music, highly developed character development by some fine actors, and edge of the seat tension.

The Turkish subculture in Berlin is the hotbed for trouble between Turks and Germans. Add to this setting the fact that the film deals with the taboos of gay life, transgender and transvestite men, and the concomitant stresses of families who deal with these issues on a daily basis and the result is a film full of richly detailed stories.

Lola (Gandi Mukli), a Turkish drag queen has a lover Billy the Kid (Erdal Yildiz), a macho, closeted Turk who views his role as the Man and Lola as the woman and encourages Lola to have gender altering surgery so they can live as husband and wife back in Turkey. Murat (Baki Davrak) is Lola's baby brother, also gay, living with his mother and older brother, Osman (Hasan Ali Mete) who disowned Lola for his proclivities. After 15 years Lola returns home to demand his inheritance share to proceed with his sex change and reunites with Murat eventually revealing murky family secrets: the results are tragic to all involved. This is the main story of the film. But there are many others!

There is a fascinating relationship between another Turk Iskender (Murat Yilmaz) who is picked up by an older elegant German Friedrich (Michael Gerber) whose affair meets with challenges from his aged but grand mother Ute (a marvelous Inge Keller!). And there is the gay bashing drama between young German lads and the Turks which instead of being simply an evil tragedy is a character study of why gay bashing occurs: the main perpetrator is ambivalent about his own sexuality and the way this story plays out is both gruesome and heartbreaking.

Yes, there are other side stories but suffice it to say that Ataman has created a film mesmerizing in content and production. It is one of those films that pleads to be watched again after the various stories have been told: knowledge of the ending events is yet more potent the second time around. Recommended for lovers of art films. In German with subtitles. Grady Harp, December 05

Kutlug Ataman is one of most succesfull new Turkish director.We are waiting a new project from him.

First I must thank and congratulate the director of this movie and all the actors. This is a must own movie which you'll want to watch over and over... don't miss it!

Hated it threw it behind the tv with meet the parents were it will never see the light of day. 1 star is to good for it