Generally speaking, I hate films and television series based on Dumas père's marvellous "Le Comte de Monte Cristo" - not because I dislike the novel (it's one of my favourites) but because most of the screen adaptations of the book compare so unfavourably to the source material that one has one's doubts as to whether the scriptwriters actually ever read the book. Almost invariably, the story lines follow the same patterns, altering the aspects of the book that make it great, without being daring enough to create good original material.
Ezel is different - it doesn't even try to follow the details of the novel (it takes in present day Turkey and Cyprus, not 19th century Paris, and the characters bear little resemblance to their prototypes), but it smartly captures those aspects of the narrative that made the book great to begin with, while coming up with plenty of worthwhile original plot twists on its own.
So what makes the series so great? First, the non-linear narrative makes this serialized television at its best (interestingly, Dumas originally planned to begin Monte Cristo with the revenge story, and tell the background story through "flashbacks", which is the route the screenwriters take here).
Second, both the casting and character development are fantastic. A major problem with most Monte Cristo adaptations is that the main character is either played either as being something of a hot-head or so self-pitying that the viewer wonders how he could possibly have the self-control and intelligence to conceive or carry out an elaborate plot of vengeance. Kenan Imirzalioglu's Ezel, however, avoids both those pitfalls. He's all cold, carefully controlled rage - but the viewer never forgets that somewhere deep down, Omer (his original identity) lives on. Cansu Dere, in a role that is the antithesis of her part in "Sila", is equally excellent as his morally compromised love interest. Eyşan is not precisely what one would call a nice person - but as played with tragic vulnerability by Dere, the viewer can believe that she wants to be a good person, if only she knew how, and one finds oneself rooting for her redemption. It's difficult to think of a more complex or stereotype-breaking character on television than Eyşan. The rest of the cast is also extremely well-suited to their parts, and the villains do not suffer from that ubiquitous disease suffered by most television villains - one-dimensionality. Baris Falay's delightfully over-the-top performance as Ali (I mean that in a good way) is nicely balanced out by Yigit Özsener's creepily understated menace as Cengiz. Tuncel Kurtiz gives what may be the best performance of his long and distinguished career as Ezel's prison "mentor", while Sedef Avci is luminous as Eyşan's doomed younger sister.
Third, there are the production values. The series is visually sleek, but substance is never sacrificed for style. The costume designers also seem to be having fun, dressing Imirzalioglu in slick high-end designer suits and Dere in the sort of outfits only models (or characters played by them) can carry off. Finally, the soundtrack is incredible - it compares favourably in terms of quality and originality with great film scores like that from "The Godfather", "The Mission", and "Doctor Zhivago", creating exactly the right emotional pitch of excitement and suspense.
The series lives up to its hype.
Ezel is different - it doesn't even try to follow the details of the novel (it takes in present day Turkey and Cyprus, not 19th century Paris, and the characters bear little resemblance to their prototypes), but it smartly captures those aspects of the narrative that made the book great to begin with, while coming up with plenty of worthwhile original plot twists on its own.
So what makes the series so great? First, the non-linear narrative makes this serialized television at its best (interestingly, Dumas originally planned to begin Monte Cristo with the revenge story, and tell the background story through "flashbacks", which is the route the screenwriters take here).
Second, both the casting and character development are fantastic. A major problem with most Monte Cristo adaptations is that the main character is either played either as being something of a hot-head or so self-pitying that the viewer wonders how he could possibly have the self-control and intelligence to conceive or carry out an elaborate plot of vengeance. Kenan Imirzalioglu's Ezel, however, avoids both those pitfalls. He's all cold, carefully controlled rage - but the viewer never forgets that somewhere deep down, Omer (his original identity) lives on. Cansu Dere, in a role that is the antithesis of her part in "Sila", is equally excellent as his morally compromised love interest. Eyşan is not precisely what one would call a nice person - but as played with tragic vulnerability by Dere, the viewer can believe that she wants to be a good person, if only she knew how, and one finds oneself rooting for her redemption. It's difficult to think of a more complex or stereotype-breaking character on television than Eyşan. The rest of the cast is also extremely well-suited to their parts, and the villains do not suffer from that ubiquitous disease suffered by most television villains - one-dimensionality. Baris Falay's delightfully over-the-top performance as Ali (I mean that in a good way) is nicely balanced out by Yigit Özsener's creepily understated menace as Cengiz. Tuncel Kurtiz gives what may be the best performance of his long and distinguished career as Ezel's prison "mentor", while Sedef Avci is luminous as Eyşan's doomed younger sister.
Third, there are the production values. The series is visually sleek, but substance is never sacrificed for style. The costume designers also seem to be having fun, dressing Imirzalioglu in slick high-end designer suits and Dere in the sort of outfits only models (or characters played by them) can carry off. Finally, the soundtrack is incredible - it compares favourably in terms of quality and originality with great film scores like that from "The Godfather", "The Mission", and "Doctor Zhivago", creating exactly the right emotional pitch of excitement and suspense.
The series lives up to its hype.