Make Me Believe Review: Directed by Evren Karabiyik Günaydin and Murat Saraçoglu, this is a Turkish film, also known as Sen Inandir. It stars Ayça Aysin Turan, Ekin Koç, Cagri Citanak, Bülent Gültekin, Cagla Irmak, Yildiz Kültür, Zerrin Sümer and Kemal Okan Özkan, alongside other cast members. The film is written by Selen Bagci and produced by Cemal Okan and Timur Savci. Sedat Yücel serves as the cinematographer while Doga Ebrisim performs the original music.
– The Make Me Believe Review Does Not Contain Spoilers –
Enemies to Lover is a trope nearly every rom-com enthusiast will tell you is their favourite. So the feat that this movie starts off like that is incredibly promising. Granted that their rivalry is incredibly childish, and it is blatantly unclear why they hate each other in the first place, but when has semantics ever done anything in a rom-com? Anyway, forced proximity, in this case, is the perfect trope to continue on, and that is exactly what this movie brings to the viewers.
The premise in itself is a brilliant setting for some great angst and potential for a good pay-off. However, the simmering effect of the angst that should be present doesn’t come through too quickly; they genuinely hate each other and are not the kind where you can see the tension radiating off of them in waves. It’s the kind we reserve for the people we don’t like because they are being absolutely ridiculous. This means that while we get an extremely realistic take on their blatant despisement of each other, it is incredibly confusing when they tip the line over hatred and move towards romantic attraction.
However, their saving grace is the scenery because they provide the perfect background to their fights and their reconciliations. When we discover what actually happened between them, the male character comes off as too immature, a theme we continue seeing throughout the film. It is also amazing how the female protagonist has the most rom-com job ever. Working as a magazine editor is a romance trope as old as time.
Which is why the premise seems overdone and bland, but their specific idiosyncrasies, tendencies and love languages make up for the standard formula that this genre can bank on. It is definitely one of the good ones that manage to become a little bad the more you think about it. Even for the moment, though, at least one can enjoy the effects this brings to the audience. There is a secondary romance plot, too, that definitely only exists to assist the main romance plot, but it doesn’t seem forced, so that is still a better element than anything else.
Other than that, the cinematography is good. Some incredibly aesthetic shots make the cut and carry this vacation romance for what it is. However, the time the two characters had left for the reconciliation part of the movie was incredibly low, so their interaction seemed a little rushed, with the writing speeding up just a tad after the brief slag at the beginning of the movie. Other than that, this was a good watch, and there are moments of angst, meaningful interaction, drama and tension that line up well with the genre.
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Make Me Believe Review: Final Thoughts
I would suggest that people watch this film if they are interested in learning what the Turkish rom-com genre looks like, although there isn’t much difference from the Hollywood formula. It is like every average rom-com, so if someone wanted to see this film, they could do for the brilliant location and stunning actors who all looked blessed by the sun throughout the course of the movie. The female protagonist didn’t even have to do her hair because she rocked natural, air-dried curls without any remorse.
While this film definitely doesn’t pass the Bechdel test, at least there are moments when the female characters are not just discussing the men they have a romantic interest in. They also discuss the men they’d destroy in their workspace if they ever decided to interfere. A little bit of girlboss, main character energy is there, but it isn’t terrible that the main character becomes unlikeable. Character dynamics are well thought-out, the writing is fine, and even the ending lands somewhat well.
Make Me Believe is currently streaming on Netflix.
What did you think of the romcom? Did this film contain any of your favourite tropes from the genre? Let us know in the comments below.