The Wall

Produced in France, The Wall (aka Le Mur) was the last work of Turkish writer/director/political activist Yilmaz Guney. Like most of his best works (e.g. Yol), Guney based the wall on his own unhappy personal experience in his native country. The principal characters are a group of young disenfranchised orphans, detained in a prison in Ankara. Here the children are regularly brutalized and raped by the guards. The young prisoners ultimately stage an abortive revolt against their tormentors. Cowritten by Guney and Marie-Helene Quinton, The Wall was considered a disappointment by Guney's devotees, but has since been redefined as one of the director's most powerful works. (Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide)