Closing this Thursday, December 4th

Aydin (Haluk Bilginer) is a former actor, a middle-aged man now running a small hotel in Anatolian foothills. He lives with his young wife Nihal (Melisa Sözen), and the couple are offering support and shelter to Necla (Demet Akbağ), Aydin’s sister, who is enduring a painful divorce. As the snow begins to fall, the seemingly idyllic setting becomes a difficult place to escape and the isolation reveals Aydin as a man who is subtly at odds with the world around him, in conflict with his family and community.

The deserved winner of the Palme d’Or at Cannes this year, Winter Sleep is a mesmerising, brutally honest, and quite brilliant work which positions Nuri Bilge Ceylan (Distant, Once Upon a Time in Anatolia) as a modern heir to Ingmar Bergman given his formidable insight into the human condition. (Notes by Michael Hayden.)

Don’t forget we now schedule weekly.

★★★★★ Irish Independent ★★★★1/2 RTE TEN ★★★★ The Guardian ★★★★ The Irish Times