REVIEW: Three Monkeys (2008)

See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. The title of Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s Turkish film, Three Monkeys (2008), evokes the proverbial three wise monkeys by focusing on the dangers of a dysfunctional family that fails to communicate and, instead, avoids, represses, and internalizes the evil right in front of them. One fateful night Servet, an ambitious politician, kills a pedestrian with his car and enlists a destitute employee, Eyüp, to serve his time in exchange for a hefty bounty. During his sentence, his wife, Hacer, becomes embroiled in an affair with Servet, and Eyüp and his son, Ismael, are wracked with guilt and betrayal to discover her infidelity. When Servet winds up dead, they must decide whether to confront the truth or perpetuate this cycle of treachery and exploitation. Winner of the best director prize at Cannes and a master of ambience, Ceylan proves himself an auteur reminiscent of Antonioni who has crafted a stark, minimalist, and nuanced portrait of sexual and class conflict in modern-day Turkey. (Liesl Swanbeck)

Opens at Sundance Kabuki Cinemas on Friday, June 26th