Set during the period of the Varlik Vergisi (Property Tax-1942) where many non-Muslims were forced to pay higher taxes, often in an arbitrary and unrealistic way. Around two thousand non-Muslims, who could not pay the amount demanded for the tax within the time-limit of thirty days, were arrested and sent to a forced labor camp in Askale in the Erzurum Province of eastern Turkey. Twenty-one of these laborers died there. The movie is in Turkish with some parts in Armenian. It follows the plight of a family and traces how they were affected by the tax and other policies directed at non-Muslim ethnic minorities: Durmus and Nimet are in the grip of poverty in a village of Central Anatolia. They move to Istanbul, a metropolitan city for better life and take shelter behind their fellow countryman, Bekir. He is the concierge in an inn of Halit Bey, a rich businessman. He finds a job as a porter for Durmus. This favor will create a break in the fortunes of all inhabitants. Durmus is an extremely ambitious man who always wants to have more and moves forward in a different direction. He will not satisfy the small job given to him, this greed will be the catastrophe of everyone. The asset tax for non-Muslim minorities will ruin all non-Muslim citizens, especially Halit Bey. Durmus has eye on everything Halit Bey has; his mansion, his shops and his mistress Nefise, a coquettish and money-loving woman. Halit Bey starts to sell off his property in order to pay the assets tax levied to his beloved wife, Nora, who has an Armenian origin and is receiving treatment in a nursing home, because she lost her mind in consequence of being unable to give a child to her husband - in fact Halit Bey is infertile. She was raped by her father in-law while his wife watches. Nora'brother Levon is sent to the exile because of Wealth Tax. Wealth Tax has started to affect everyone's destiny.

Tags

Drama, History

Language

Turkish

Director

Tomris Giritlioglu

Cast

Zafer Algoz , Hulya Avsar , Guven Kirac , Zuhal Olcay

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