Climates is such a revelatory film, such a tactile, beautiful film. About? About people, a couple to be exact, and... changing climates. It's a very audacious film; not many directors would open a film with three minutes of looking at a woman's face and make it work. To his credit, like all truly great directors, Nuri Bilge Ceylan picks the right face in Ebru Ceylan.
Ebru Ceylan, the lead actress of the film who plays Bahar, has been described as luminous, and that description only begins to touch it. What she brings to the film is something not unlike grace.
To show how completely empty I go into a movie, I didn't know the lead characters were played by the director and his wife until after the movie ended. I never read the back of paperbacks, and I never read the back of DVDs until after I've seen the movie or read the book. Getting a synopsis of what you're about to experience cheats you of the discovery of that experience. Go into something spoiler free is my motto. And give it the chance to surprise and astonish you. This film did.
Both actors turn in astonishing, vulnerable, tearing performances. And this film isn't strictly speaking, film; it's filmed on HiDef cameras, then mastered for the DVD format. All I can say is it is mastered with a clarity and range and sharpness that, while not being a high-def DVD, blows away just about every DVD I own. It just looks fantastic!
How they pulled it off I don't know, but I've watched 70mm in the cinema, so I know how overwhelming the real thing is when seen in a beautifully mastered print. This DVD of course isn't 70mm, or even 35mm. But what it is is one of the most astounding uses of compression and mastering on a DVD that I've seen to date. So the beauty and range of every frame cannot be overstated — it is part and parcel of the attraction of this film. From the first frame, to the last, I was awed and entranced... and just a little in love.
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