Subtly probing issues of masculinity, identity and performance via the eponymous Ahmet, a military paramedic by profession who also excels in the boxing ring, Vienna-based German writer-director Lenz makes a quietly auspicious transition to feature length after a smattering of well-received shorts. Documentaries focusing so squarely on a single person inevitably rely heavily upon the charm, character and distinctiveness of the individual in question.
Fortunately for Lenz, Simsek has considerable star quality - easily enough to sustain our interest over 76 minutes. Indeed, many viewers may find this duration excessively economic. By the end of the film, the buzz-cut, bearded thespian has successfully unlocked long-suppressed vulnerabilities, and indeed seems if anything prone to fits of the waterworks. But throughout he is an engaging, genial and intriguing presence, with a ready smile and twinkling brown eyes.
He clearly enjoys warm and supportive relationships with his parents, and is an ideal rough-housing uncle for his nephews and nieces. His relatives do express some concern about the fact that, despite already being 30, Simsek is yet to marry β let alone have children of his own.
But they loom considerably large in their absence; an elephant in the room. Screen International is the essential resource for the international film industry. Subscribe now for monthly editions, awards season weeklies, access to the Screen International archive and supplements including Stars of Tomorrow and World of Locations.
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