Kedi (a film review)

Yes, I've seen my last film of Edinburgh International Film Festival for this year! But learning of the release of Kedi onto our screens had me back into the cinema immediately!

Kedi (Turkish for cat) is a beautiful film about Istanbul seen from the perspective of the many feral and semi feral cats that stalk the city streets. Several cats are featured - from the polite cat who waits outside a restaurant and paws at the window when it's hungry, to ruthless hunters, to those who steal and scavange from the markets to cats who have adopted favourite people. Its obvious that all these cats have distinct personalities and all of them have a natural charm and engaging screen presence.

The film also focuses on the many people who look after the cats, the fishermen who share their catch with the cats, the artists who adopt cats for company and inspiration and the people who wander the streets weith bags of food to give out to cats. Everyone speaks of their love for the cats and how they help them in their lives.

But Istanbul is developing and expanding, green spaces are being lost, meaning that there is less space for the cats. This will mean issues for the health and welfare of the cats and not once was the issue of neutering brought up, even in passing.

This is a lovely, easy to watch, relaxing film for anyone who loves cats. Istanbul also looks like a beautiful city and a wonderful place to be a cat.

Kedi is showing at the Cameo until Thursday 6 July. You can view times here.

You can read my last film review of this year's film festival and my round up of the festival here.