‘Conquest’ 1453 reaches more than 2 mln viewers

ISTANBUL

“Fetih 1453,” a Turkish film that details the Ottoman conquest of Istanbul, was viewed by close to 2.5 million viewers in its first week, according to Anatolia news agency.

The movie, which debuted Feb. 16, garnered an estimated record-breaking 12 million Turkish Liras at the box office in its first week, daily Milliyet reported.

The film is being shown in 850 cinemas around Turkey and has reportedly drawn 2.47 million people.
The movie, directed by Faruk Aksoy, tells the story of Istanbul’s capture by the Ottomans during the reign of Sultan Mehmed II. It has angered Christians in the German city of Cologne, with the Christian association Via Dolorosa boycotting the film. The association said Turks should be ashamed of what they did to Christians in the past instead of celebrating Istanbul’s conquest. Germany has prohibited the presentation of the film to viewers under the age of 16, Milliyet reported.

Turkish immigrants in Germany, more than 104,000 of whom went to see the film during the first three days of its release, have complained that they were unable to bring their children along.

Film angered Greeks

The movie has also angered Greek viewers after it was released there in January. Greek weekly To Proto Thema described the film as “conquest propaganda by the Turks” in a story published on its website.

“The Turkish invaders present themselves as rulers of the world” and “[fail] to show the mass killings of Greeks and the plunder of the land by the Turks,” the piece said.