The title actually better translated as "Against the wall" and, seems to me, expresses feelings of the director Faith Akin regarding fate of his Turkish compatriots transplanted from Turkey to Germany, very much dissimilar countries divided by culture, traditions and way of life. Cahit (Birol Unel) deeply assimilated Turk in German society, who lost someone dear to him and on the self-destruction mission. Sibel (Sibel Kekilli) is a young Turkish girl, feeling trapped in the stifling confines of her traditional family, not being able to escape, trying to commit series of unsuccessful suicides. I hope you are getting the picture, and this is not a pretty one! Both of them are driven by basic instincts to which they give themselves fully. Loveless sex, drugs, bar scenes – the works. They are both "walled in" by their individual worlds from which there is no escape. Cahit is unpleasant, nasty, egoistic, dirty and ugly personality. Sibel is passionate, self indulgent, immediate-gratification type. Both of them do not exhibit any trace of intellectual life what-so-ever. They as well could be a pig and a cow. Food, sex, drugs – not the drive to improve themselves, use what god's given, learn to see beauty in the nature, develop and use your mind instead of systematically destroying it.
Oh well, you will say, but they are in special circumstances. Human condition, you will say. What can you do? They are trying and trying but somehow can never quite kill themselves. Perhaps because their level of wretchedness can never exceed their hope for another round of sex, drugs, or any other such bodily pleasure. They hurt other people, who feel responsible for them, abuse them. And what about human condition of the rest of us, who are trying to bring meaning to our lives? Do we have rights? Do we deserve respect, even if we do not hurt others, working, trying to make life pleasant to others, do not ask and expect handouts? But they are mentally ill, you will say. Don't we have responsibility to care for sick? Are we to abandon them? Dump our daughters and friends when they are sick? Perhaps we can save them? Hopefully, the "Head On" will chip off a piece of the wall that isolates main characters and permit better their social integration into German-Turkish-Human society.
Faith Akin produced credible and potent work of art which will endure. The film can (and should be) viewed more than once and deserves the acclaim it had gotten. It is nuanced and rich in promises of more and better things to come from this director.
Oh well, you will say, but they are in special circumstances. Human condition, you will say. What can you do? They are trying and trying but somehow can never quite kill themselves. Perhaps because their level of wretchedness can never exceed their hope for another round of sex, drugs, or any other such bodily pleasure. They hurt other people, who feel responsible for them, abuse them. And what about human condition of the rest of us, who are trying to bring meaning to our lives? Do we have rights? Do we deserve respect, even if we do not hurt others, working, trying to make life pleasant to others, do not ask and expect handouts? But they are mentally ill, you will say. Don't we have responsibility to care for sick? Are we to abandon them? Dump our daughters and friends when they are sick? Perhaps we can save them? Hopefully, the "Head On" will chip off a piece of the wall that isolates main characters and permit better their social integration into German-Turkish-Human society.
Faith Akin produced credible and potent work of art which will endure. The film can (and should be) viewed more than once and deserves the acclaim it had gotten. It is nuanced and rich in promises of more and better things to come from this director.