Women’s narratives inhibiting scopophilic and voyeuristic views: woman as the saviour in contemporary Turkish women’s films

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study discusses the current Turkish women’s cinema through the films, Mavi Dalga (2013, Blue Wave) and İşe Yarar Bir Şey (2017, Something Useful) by exploring the definitions of women’s cinema. This article aims to examine the point of women’s films in contemporary Turkish cinema by referring to the previous discussions on women’s cinema and addressing the portrayal of women in films that fall under women’s films. The films Mavi Dalga and İşe Yarar Bir Şey, depict women as the saviour and as active, self-sufficient, economically independent, not dependent on men, and following their wishes instead of becoming passive, harmonious, and stuck in the narrow patterns of life in this world, although they want to get rid of the practices of the male world. These films define the woman as a vital, independent, helpful subject in solidarity with her fellows discussed by Smelik’s definition of women’s cinema. The films comply with Johnston’s claims that women are included in the narrative of women’s films by the audience. Moreover, these films identify with the main character, and they stand at an essential point in Turkish cinema with their independent and powerful depiction of women.