Ceyda Torun directs Kedi, a documentary that explores the lives and personalities of several stray cats that live in Istanbul, Turkey. The human beings who care for them provide the only narration as they share details of how they met and responded to the cats and what role the cats play in his or her lives. If you don’t like cats, but like other animals, you probably should not see Kedi. If you do like cats, see Kedi. If you don’t think that animals are sentient beings with lives as rich and full as our own, then I think that Kedi could persuade you unless you don’t have a heart.
Kedi explores the unique relationship between the human beings and the cats. The human beings respect the autonomy of the cats and coexist with them as if they were neighbors instead of seeing them as a nuisance or a problem that needs to be solved. How many people would have an open tab at the vet for a cat that does not live in one’s home? These men and women show a tenderness and kindness that people in America do not show others. Kedi shows that the tradition of hospitality to guests is extended to cats, who are like children to these people.
This generosity comes with unexpected benefits. Kedi reveals a truth that the medical community has known for a long time. Interacting with a cat has a palliative effect and cures physical and psychological ailments.
Kedi explores spiritual themes. Human beings are only acting as middlemen for God, which Christians call stewardship. The human beings theorize that cats know that human beings are not God, which is why they have a different relationship to us than dogs, and that when a cat chooses a human being, it is a blessing from God, which can also translate into God answering our prayers. I will cosign this statement. It is an honor.
Two things distinguish Kedi from any YouTube cat video. First, the camera work is amazing. Do you know how many times that they probably had to follow the cat or research the cat’s routines to be able to set up a camera in advance to follow the cat so closely?!? I can’t believe that the sudden appearance of camera did not bother the cats.
Second, Kedi has a hidden agenda. Kedi is also a love letter to a version of Istanbul and a way of life that is threatened by commercialization or Westernization. With the elimination of small markets and the rise of big skyscrapers, the cats and their human beings may be pushed out. Kedi sneaks in an urgent, but subtle plea to developers to preserve or at least continue this way of life.
Many people will take Kedi for granted or dismiss it as a cat documentary, but Kedi is a must see documentary for its sensitivity to all life and its artistry in crafting a riveting story and capturing the images beautifully.