Seemingly to appear out of nowhere, a stranger named Battal finds himself in the middle of a snow-covered landscape. As soon as he approaches a town, he ends up saving the life of a boy drowned in the river. Immediately, he becomes a local hero, but his enigmatic speeches make the locals weary. Battal claims that he's looking for love and nothing else, as nothing else matters in the world, which is greeted with laughter and ridicule. Soon, strange events take hold of the town from mysterious robberies to a crashing satellite. The stranger becomes a loved and hated prophet as suspicions grow. On top of it all, he falls in love with the sister of the boy he had saved, who chooses to name herself Neptune. It is poignant that in reaction Battal names himself Kosmos, as the quest for love is as old and infinite as the universe itself.
Sufi ideals such as the quest for true love take center stage in Kosmos' language and are introduced via various scenes. The main argument is that, regardless of good or evil, the same fate awaits everyone. Therefore, it is vain and useless to try and define oneself as superior by comparison to other people or animals. At the end of the day, we're no better than a duck, a cow or a bird. As such, many visual juxtapositions are made between humans and animals in the film. Multiple close-ups on cows' eyes are interspersed with other tracking shots of ducks running away. There are many lines in the script that consistently refer to how humans define themselves in relation to animals, which is problematic in principal. We are not as special as we think we are, and the more special we think we are, the less we can understand the world and our place in it. Kosmos patiently explains this in various dialogues he has with other characters.
Sufi elements are further strengthened with shamanistic rituals that fortify the fantastic aura of the film. Firstly, Kosmos heals people in a ritualistic manner, but more prominently, his mating calls with his lover, Neptune, are striking. Throughout the film, Neptune and Kosmos call out to each other like birds. They tease, flirt and play as if they're animals. The constant mating calls reach a crescendo when they almost literally transform themselves to birds perched on the bed frame. The euphoria of requited love is enough for both as no sexual release takes place. Erdem pulls together the sounds and visuals of this scene in such wizardry that this seemingly unnatural act appears to be completely natural and plausible. Goosebumps abound.
On the topic of sound, Erdem's attention to the soundscape of the film is constant throughout, which extends the suspension of disbelief. The soundscape is full and vibrant, pulling in the audience to the environment of the film and complementing the ominous visuals.
All things considered, Erdem delivers a powerful punch with Kosmos. The cinematography and sound design both picked up awards at the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival along with Best Film and Best Director awards. The script, written by Erdem, is fairly mature and well-written; however, the film could probably be trimmed to be tighter and shorter. Regardless of its fantastic visuals, engrossing sound and overall impressive vision of its world, it will be hard for the film to reach to the mainstream as distributors are likely to shy away from it due to the above sticking points. Let that not be a hindrance though as it deserves a place in the cinephile's library.
