Topkapi
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Features
• Closed-captioned
• Color
• Dubbed
• Letterboxed
• Subtitled
• Widescreen
• NTSC
In Theaters : 17 September, 1964
DVD Release : 11 December, 2001 |
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♥♥♥♥♥ |
Starring Istanbul, co-starring Mercouri, Ustinov et. al.
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18 years ago, I traveled to Turkey, fell in love with the magnificent city of Istanbul, and then searched in vain for videos of this movie, which every guide book mentioned when describing the museum in the exquisite Topkapi palace. I'm delighted that it's finally available. Much of the movie was shot on location, and it does as much justice as film can do to the great monuments of that city, as well as its picturesque but ramshackle poor districts. The wrestling championship that the jewel thieves use as their alibi during the heist was fascinating, and the competitors look like authentic Turkish athletes rather than actors. The competition seems to be a direct descendant of ancient Greek and Roman athletics, including the athletes' practice of covering their bodies with oil before the contest.
The plot is entertainingly complex, especially because although you see the preparations underway for the heist, you don't know just how they are supposed to work until you see the plans unfold. So although this movie makes no pretense to be intellectual, it does require you to use your brain in order to follow the plot. All the performances are wonderful, although frankly, Mercouri was too old for the character she's playing. The close-ups of her heavily made-up face, unfortunately, tend to undermine her bravura acting. But Ustinov makes the most of his unprepossessing physique to create a wonderfully comic character as the poor "shmoe" caught up in her schemes. He deserved his Oscar, but I wish there were a prize for best performance by a city.
P.S. -- after seeing this movie, check out the short film "The Wrong Trousers" on the DVD "Wallace and Gromit in Three Amazing Adventures." The parody of the jewel heist in Topkapi, complete with jewel thief dangling from a museum ceiling, is priceless. |
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Topkapi dvd movie.