Turkish Ice Cream: World War I and Turkey's Expensive Patriotic Film

World War I has been called the 'mother of all wars'; a great war that transformed Europe, led to the emergence of many Arab countries from the remnants of the defeated Ottoman Empire, and ultimately became the smoldering fire that ignited the flames of the horrific Second World War. Strangely, even after a century, it remains a battleground for political attacks among politicians. While World War II, due to its proximity to the present, has generally received more cinematic attention, since 2015, thanks to special European cultural budgets for addressing World War I, the number of cinematic and artistic works related to this war has significantly increased, drawing attention to one of the most horrific wars in human history. In this context, Turkey, which some believe is led by leaders dreaming of the return of the Ottoman Empire, has embarked on a massive cinematic project about World War I: a film titled 'Turkish Ice Cream.' This $28 million film, considered very expensive for Turkish cinema, has been screening in 900 theaters across Turkey since March 15 and has been well-received by Turkish audiences; it also had its world premiere in London this week as part of 'Turkish Film Week,' where the only negative character in the film hails from. The film is set in Australia in 1915: two Turks live comfortably in a small town in Australia and run an ice cream shop until an English captain arrives for recruitment and simultaneously the Ottomans enter the war, thus placing the two, who have lived in Australia for years, on the enemy's side. The first half of the film appears to be a cheerful comedy that can entertain the audience with occasionally engaging situations, but in the second half, as the flames of 'patriotism' and the sense of saving the country ignite, the film transforms into a somewhat biased action piece that occasionally aims to raise the Ottoman Empire's flag, inevitably becoming a political statement in today's sensitive situation in Turkey. The mockery of war in the first half of the film seems unlikely to end in such a bloody conclusion. However, instead of continuing this trend in the second part, the film descends into hero-worship, deliberately emphasizing a form of extreme patriotism through dialogues and special scenes. The wife of one of the two heroes, in one of the most slogan-like dialogues, states that their child can grow up without a father but cannot without a 'homeland.' It seems that love could ultimately change the fate of the film's characters; however, this does not happen. The scene of sewing the star and crescent onto a red fabric to create the Ottoman flag and raising it in several bloody scenes in the film does not contradict the director Ken Ulkay's statements in London about 'efforts for peace and friendship.' Although the main characters initially become victims of a bloody war, they soon become embroiled in a senseless war due to their ideological beliefs, killing very young soldiers, some of whom are being forced to go to the front lines. On the other hand, the issue of Australian natives and the fact that 'the English have occupied their land' is another unrelated point in the screenplay that only serves as a slogan in the film's narrative to strike at the 'enemy' and has no connection to the film's characters. It seems that love could ultimately change the fate of the film's characters; however, the creators conclude the love of one of the two main characters for a mute Australian girl without a happy ending; thus, only the sparks of a futile ideological war remain, which has not yet extinguished and can ignite at any moment in this mad world.