Overview
A woman's quest for freedom collides with the weight of family expectations and tradition.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Moderate
- harrowing
- austere
- intimate
- serious film night
- social issue discussion
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as a simple, meaningful, universal, and emotionally powerful social drama, though aggregate scores indicate generally positive rather than unanimous acclaim.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Umay's family prioritizes traditional norms and her husband's authority over her safety and autonomy.
Umay repeatedly seeks reconciliation with her Berlin family even as their rejection threatens her independence and safety.
The Berlin-based Turkish family is divided between affection for Umay and conventions connected to their community and life in Turkey.
The film presents Umay's relocation, family confrontations, and attempts at reconciliation as intimate, emotionally direct domestic drama.
Films like When We Leave, and why
A Separation
shared focus on patriarchal control, family pressure, and a woman seeking autonomy within a socially restrictive culture
The Salesman
shared intimate realism, domestic conflict, and emotionally devastating family consequences
Persepolis
shared feminist social drama, cultural displacement, and a protagonist resisting oppressive gender expectations
The Visitor
shared restrained humanism, immigrant-family tensions, and moral conflict within a close-knit community
Movie Details
- Director
- Feo Aladag
- Release Date
- 2010-03-11
- Runtime
- 119 min
- Rating
- 6.9 / 10 (77)
Cast
- Sibel Kekilli
- Florian Lukas
- Nizam Schiller
- Derya Alabora
- Settar Tanrıöğen
- Tamer Yiğit
- Serhad Can
- Almila Bağrıaçık
- Nursel Köse
- Alwara Höfels
Common questions
- What is When We Leave about?
- A Turkish-German woman fights to protect her son and claim an independent life while the family love she longs for becomes entangled with patriarchal violence.
- What is When We Leave like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of When We Leave as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is When We Leave violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in When We Leave as moderate.
- What did critics think of When We Leave?
- Critics broadly praised the film as a simple, meaningful, universal, and emotionally powerful social drama, though aggregate scores indicate generally positive rather than unanimous acclaim.
- Which films are like When We Leave?
- Films with a similar feel include A Separation, The Salesman, Persepolis, and The Visitor.
- How long is When We Leave?
- When We Leave runs 119 minutes.
