Five orphaned sisters are put under house arrest by their uncle and grandmother after they are seen horsing around with local boys from school. While their actions were purely innocent, their behavior is viewed as scandalous and shameful by the conservative elders in their small Turkish village. After this incident, their grandmother turns her attention towards marrying off her granddaughters. Each of the five sisters rebel in their own way, but it is the youngest and rowdiest sister, Lale, who is the central protagonist of the film. She watches helplessly as each of her older sisters is married off with an increasing sense of dread and desperation. While this may sound hopelessly depressing, the movie is equal parts beautiful and tragic and floats across the screen in a dreamlike manner. Not all of the sisters escape their oppressive surroundings or their assigned fate, but the message is clear: it’s crucial to try.
""Mustang" is the dbut feature of Deniz Gamze Ergven, and it's quite something: a coming-of-age fable mapped onto a prison break, at once dream-hazed and sharp-edged with suspense."
— Anthony Lane
In a Turkish village, five orphaned sisters live under strict rule while members of their family prepare their arranged marriages.
Oscars
1 nomination
Cannes
1 win, 2 nominations
Golden Globes
1 nomination
BAFTA
1 nomination
Spirit Awards
1 nomination
Nat. Board of Review
1 win
European Film Awards
1 win, 2 nominations
César Awards
4 wins, 5 nominations
Goya Awards
1 win
"Ergven films their blossoming bodies with the same unyielding energy and liberates her narrative-a skillful blend of tragedy and fable-from genre constraints, crafting her own brand of magical realism instead."
— Yonca Talu