Taglines: In the War on Terror… sacrifices must be made.
Two Turkish anti-terrorist agents are sent to New York City on a mission to find and bring back the dangerous Islamic leader codenamed “Dajjal”, believed to be hiding in there. Working with the FBI and NYPD, the agents orchestrate the arrest of Hadji Gumus, a well-respected Muslim scholar and family man who years before fled to the United States after being released from a Turkish prison, where he served time for murder. This tale love, friendship, peace and prejudices, takes us on a journey seeking to answer the question of whether innocence or guilt even matters to one who lusts for vengeance.
Leader of a radical Islamic organization, Anti Christ whose name turned out to be a phenomenon who was sought with red notice by Interpol was reported to have been taken into custody in the USA. In order to fetch the convict, the two most successful policemen of the Turkish Police Department fly to the USA. Everything from then on seems easy but things are never the same as they seem. The story taking place within Istanbul, New York and Bitlis triangle challenges the recent-era Turkey and underlines America’s paranoia with the Islamic world after 9/11.
Turkish Singer Mahsun Kirmizigul’s recently released movie ‘Five Minarets in New York’ focuses on Islamophobia and a blood feud around the character Hacý Gümüs, a religious leader from Bitlis living in the United States. The movie’s name is a reference to the old folk song ‘Five Minarets in Bitlis,’ as there are five mosque minarets in the Bitlis skyline.
Five Minarets in New York (Turkish: New York’ta Beş Minare), released as Act of Vengeance in the U.S. and as The Terrorist in Australia, is a Turkish action film written and directed by Mahsun Kırmızıgül, which follows two Turkish police officers sent to New York City to bring back a terrorist suspect. The film, which went on nationwide general release across Turkey on November 5, 2010, was one of the highest-grossing Turkish films of 2010. The title comes from the popular Turkish folk song, Five Minarets in Bitlis (Turkish: Bitlis’te Beş Minare).
The only theater in the Turkey’s southeastern province of Bitlis recently hosted the popular movie “Five Minarets in New York” (New York’da Bes Minare), allowing local residents to watch their hometown on the silver screen. Bitlis plays a prominent role in the major action film.
The film, which Director Mahsun Kırmızıgül wrote the story and the screenplay of for around 11 years before production commenced, was shot from April to June 2010 on location in New York City, USA and Istanbul, Turkey with an estimated budget of US$20 million. It is opened in 700 screens across Turkey on November 5, 2010 at number one in the Turkish box office chart with an opening weekend gross of US$4,882,738.
Cinematographer Jim Gucciardo shot the film in Anamorphic 35mm using an Arricam LT with Hawk Anamorphic V series lenses as the main “A” camera as well as a 1-Arri 435 for high speed sequences and a 1-Arri 235 for handheld and special Steadicam sequences. Iraqi American production designer, John El Manahi was brought on to bring authenticity to the visual style of the sets and the complex action sequences.
Five Minarets in New York (2010)
Directed by: Mahsun Kirmizigul
Starring: Mahsun Kirmizigul, Danny Glover, Gina Gershon, Robert Patrick, Haluk Bilginer, Mustafa Sandal, Engin Altan Düzyatan, Justine Cotsonas, Laine Rettmer, Hisham Tawfiq, William Rueger
Screenplay by: Mahsun Kirmizigul
Production Design by: John El Manahi, Veli Kahraman
Cinematography by: James Gucciardo
Film Editing by: Mustafa Presheva
Costume Design by: Michael Bevins, Funda Buyuktunalioglu
Set Decoration by; Meral Efe, Maia Rose
Music by: Tevfik Akbasli, Yildiray Gürgen, Mahsun Kirmizigül
MPAA Rating: None.
Distributed by: Strand Releasing
Release Date: November 5, 2010