NewsBytes Recommends: 'Oregon' on Netflix; dive into friendship, fun, nostalgia
Kerem Ayan's Oregon (2023), streaming on Netflix, is the kind of film that invites you into its world merely by its synopsis. You don't even need to know about the lead actors or details about the home country, but such films tend to strike a chord almost instantly. Oregon is one such drama that allures you with the blanket of nostalgia spread over it.
This is the plot
Oregon is set in 1980s Turkey (hence the nostalgia and the old-world charm) and focuses on a couple: Hakan and Gaye. While vacationing in Istanbul, one last task these former students of filmmaking need to do is to return a cassette to their friend Selen. However, she is out of town. Will they be able to return the tape? Stream Oregon to discover!
Friendship keeps its momentum going
One of the aspects that instantly appealed to me while watching Oregon is that friendship is its centerpiece. Hakan and Gaye find themselves locked up in jail at one point, but that doesn't deter their plans to return the tape. Mid-way and then toward the ending, it is friendship that keeps the duo going and eventually (spoiler) helps them get out of the prison!
How does it work with nostalgia?
The flavor of nostalgia is hard, strong, and intentional; this is a world where only landlines exist. So, Selen cannot be dropped a text to come back to get her friends out. Several frames (especially the ones outside the jail) in the film are breathtaking, and they look like a freshly completed painting left to dry. For a moment, I wanted to be there.
Watch out for the sub-plots here
The sub-plots of Oregon are well-constructed and do not choke this film, as is the case in several films, both Indian and international. While Hakan and Gaye remain the cynosure, there is a sub-plot allotted to a sex worker whom they meet in the station, a police officer anxious about being diagnosed with cancer, and Hakan and Gaye's friends who reunite after a separation.
Stream it on Netflix today
Oregon is by no means a perfect film (it has screenplay issues and spends too much on two secondary characters), but that didn't deter me from recommending it. It feels somber and quiet at times, while needful loud on other occasions. To summarize, it can be watched for its storylines, its last few scenes that display friendship, and its tender approach.
