2023 Movie
Dir. Uluç Bayraktar · Turkey · Turkish
A more stylish mystery than its predecessor, but sabotages itself with awful characterization
At first it really seems like 10 Days of a Bad Man has learned from the mistakes of its unoriginal, self-satisfied predecessor. This sequel has a more distinct personality in general, with a better overall look and a more unique central mystery that doesn’t only deal with edgy underground trafficking rings. But it doesn’t take long to realize that this film still has the exact same attitude towards its protagonist Sadik, who refuses to develop in any meaningful way and whom the movie still lionizes as some impossibly charming but sexily flawed example of masculinity.
And throughout this ultimately pointless and hastily resolved mystery that makes no impact at the end, this 50-year-old man can’t even confront his grief in an interesting way—choosing instead to strike up a relationship with an 18-year-old girl whose only function in the story is to try and seduce him. Because nothing says getting over the death of a loved one than grooming the young woman whom you’ve known since she was a minor.
Battered, broken and bereaved, a private investigator must muscle his way through a tangle of lies to uncover the truth behind a mansion murder.
Reeling from a personal tragedy, a now jaded Sadik accepts another assignment to investigate another unexplained disappearance.
There sadly isn't much to 10 Days of a Bad Man that stands out in a positive light against the bizarre romance that begins to take center stage in its narrative. And what makes this development so disappointing is that this 18-year-old girl who's reduced into an impulsive, hormonal creature was one of the more interesting parts of the previous film. But it turns out that the only thing awaiting her in her future was being sentenced to an unhealthy, power-imbalanced relationship, built on the flimsiest emotional connection with a man more than twice her age.
Two hours of a worse movie.
Emil Hofileña is a curator at A Good Movie to Watch. He also writes as a theater critic, with work published in Rogue and Out of Print, among others. He’s probably crying over a movie or an episode as we speak.
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