Kurtlar Vadisi

"Kurtlar Vadisi" ("Valley of the Wolves") is a popular Turkish media franchise consisting of three different television series, one of them aired only for one episode, and a movie. It tells the story of a Turkish secret service agent who infiltrates the Turkish mafia and rises to a leadership position.

The franchise has been very popular obtaining high ratings for the television series and one of the highest box office returns in the history of the Turkish cinema for the movie. It has also been very controversial from time to time because of its extended scenes involving violence (skirmishes, assassinations and torture) and ideological underpinnings.

Kurtlar Vadisi, the original series

The original series first aired on January 15, 2003. It was created by Turkish director and producer [http://www.osmansinav.info/fan Osman Sınav] , who is popular for his films and television series in Turkey. It became famous both thanks to its references to the politics of Turkey and the action scenes, which were new for the Turkish audience.

Ali Candan, an undercover Turkish agent, is motivated by his captain, Aslan Akbey, to infiltrate the Turkish mafia to learn their plans and to destroy their system which is affecting Turkey deeply. Ali goes into a series of plastic surgeries to change his outlook and finally assumes the identity of Polat Alemdar.

He is put next to the mafia gunman Süleyman Çakır, a brutal man respected by his colleagues and known as a man of his word. Çakır’s knowledge about the mafia and Alemdar’s skills as a well trained agent create a partnership between the two and they start to rise in the hierarchy of the mafia, which is controlled by the supreme head, the Baron who leads the Council of the Wolves, of the whole underground organization and also a successful businessman, Mehmet Karahanlı.

During his journey to the top of the system, Polat loses many friends and allies but finally makes his way to become the new Baron which is a position that gives him a chance to destroy the mafia completely. He uses his chance and after facing international connections of the Turkish mafia including Russian and American enemies (Sharon Stone and Andy Garcia appeared in the last episodes.), he manages to break apart the mafia.

The who was pulled due to popular response. [cite journal|title=Turkey at a Crossroads, as Always|first=Khatchig|last=Mouradian|authorlink=Khatchig Mouradian|work=Armenian Weekly|volume=73|issue=16|date=2007-04-21|url=http://www.hairenik.com/armenianweekly/gin042107_011.htm|quote=A widely popular series called the “Valley of the Wolves,” which appealed to all of our worst nationalistic instincts, has been taken off the air. This didn’t happen because the EU told us to do so, but because hundreds of thousands of Turkish citizens believed that this was very harmful.]

Kurtlar Vadisi Irak

Known as the "Valley of the Wolves Iraq" by the foreign media, this theatrical release is the second installment of the popular franchise. The movie is the most expensive one in the history of the Turkish cinema. It is set in northern Iraq during the Occupation of Iraq and begins with U.S. forces capturing eleven Turkish special forces soldiers. There are some references to other real events such as the Abu Ghraib prison scandal, private security forces (Blackwater) and realistic characterizations. Well-known American actor Billy Zane portrayed Sam William Marshall, a cruel and inhumane U.S. officer, the main antagonist in the film.

"Kurtlar Vadisi Irak" grossed $27.9 million [cite web|url=http://www.lebleb.com/filmdetails.php/1037 |title=Kurtlar Vadisi Irak |publisher=Lebleb.com |date= |accessdate=2008-09-05] at the box office - $25.1 million in Turkey and $2.8 million in Europe.Its foreign market return was low. However its perceived anti-Americanism and anti-semitism gained attraction in American and European media and relevant circles.

Kurtlar Vadisi Terör

Producers decided to continue the successful television series named Kurtlar Vadisi Terör ("Valley of the Wolves: Terror") with a new plot. Polat Alemdar this time would handle the Kurdish separatist terror in Turkey. The first episode of the program aired on the night of February 8, 2007 and reached to a considerable rating share but the political reflection of the painful issues of Turkey and the violence shown in the first episode triggered a harsh response by RTÜK (High Board for Radio and TV). As a result "Kurtlar Vadisi Terör" was cancelled only after its first episode. This event created another controversy about censorship in Turkey.

Kurtlar Vadisi Pusu

Pana Film, the owner of the franchise, launched another TV series some time after this censorship event. The new show called Kurtlar Vadisi Pusu ("Valley of the Wolves: Ambush") started on April 20, 2007 on Show TV. "Kurtlar Vadisi Pusu" has not faced any responses from RTÜK yet and it attracts high ratings.

This new television series deals with the relations between the state, mafia and the business circles in Turkey. There are four powerful families in Turkey which are holding the economy of the country in their hands according to the plot of the series. Polat Alemdar decides to wage a personal war against these families and he helps Ahu Toros, a young businesswoman, who lost his father because of the conspiracy of the four big families.

Cast

Here is a list of the main players and the corresponding characters that has appeared in the franchise. The list emphasizes those that appeared in the entire franchise, but also includes certain characters, starting with Elif, that had a central place in the original series who did not survive the plot.

* Necati Şaşmaz (Polat Alemdar)
* Kenan Çoban (Abdülhey)
* Gürkan Uygun (Memati)
* Osman Wöber (Deve Tuncay Kantarcı)
* Erdem Ergüney (Deli Hikmet)
* Kerem Fırtına (Eren Eylül)
* Kenan Çoban (Abdülhey Çoban)
* Erhan Ufak (Güllü Erhan)
* Özgü Namal (Elif)
* Oktay Kaynarca (Süleyman Çakır)
* Zafer Ergin (Mehmet Karahanlı)
* Atilla Olgaç (Kılıç)
* Sönmez Atasoy (Halo - Halil İbrahim Kapar)

References

* [http://www.kurtlarvadisipusu08.com Kurtlar Vadisi Website]