14th May 1971, Anatolian Smile, ‘Kensington post’ page 44
THE ANATOLIAN SMILE remains one of the most unseen milestones in the history of the American cinema. It is bound by no conventions, no limitations as regards stars or running time, and in every respect it is the work of one man Elia Kazan. Based on his own novel, “America, America,” the [film] is largely biographical, based as it is on the life of Kazan’s uncle derived from stories told to him over the years by his relatives, and in particular on his uncle’s attempts as a young man to emigrate to the States from his native Turkey. Kazan captures the atmosphere beautifully, whether it is reflected on the faces of the local people or in the boy’s struggle to escape from his environment. It is a picturesque, nostalgic environment but a savage one also. At the Electric Cinema, Portobello Road, today (Thursday) and tomorrow at 8 p.m., Saturday at 7.30 p.m. With Stathis Giallelis, Frank Wolff.
Mary Lear