About Dry Grasses (Kuru Otlar Üstüne)
Directed Nuri Bilge Ceylan

Sunday, March 24, 4 pm | BUY TICKETS

$12 | $8 Speed members

“Above all, the film captures how easy it is to deposit too much hope on the few who represent dissent, or freedom, when one is trapped.”—Diego Semerene, Slant Magazine

Nestled away in wintry East Anatolia, public-school art teacher Samet (Deniz Celiloğlu) yearns to leave the sleepy village for cosmopolitan Istanbul. Further disenchanted when he and Kenan (Musab Ekici), a colleague, come under public scrutiny, Samet fears circumstances will keep him in Anatolia and his dreams of a new life permanently out of reach.

A silver lining is a budding relationship with Nuray (Merve Dizdar), a fellow teacher and firebrand who develops connections with both Samet and Kenan, forcing Samet to confront what he can’t readily accept.

Renowned for his nuanced, visually ravishing imagery, award-winning director Nuri Bilge Ceylan (Once Upon a Time in Anatolia, Winter Sleep) capstones the film with one of his greatest sequences, a dazzling meta-cinematic climax featuring an entrancing performance from Dizdar, who took home Best Actress at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. 2023, Turkey, DCP, in Turkish with English subtitles, 197 minutes. Recommended for 16+.