Inflame is based on a true story but it need not be. It could just as well be an ambiguous portrait of a woman dealing with mundane circumstances that become extraordinary before she realizes it.
Hasret (Algi Eke) works as a TV news editor. She goes about her job doing what her bosses say. Boy, I feel her frustration dealing with people who waste time when she already knows how to do it.
Outside work, Hasret walks through the park overwhelmed by sound. Childhood memories come back to her. As the town evacuates it becomes a creepy ghost town where she is legend.
Inflame is much more about feeling than story but I get the feeling. You’re trying to focus on your own life but the world can overwhelm you. People try to get Hasret to leave sooner, and to that part I don’t relate. I would rip the band aid off and get it out of the way, but if she’s sentimental or just preoccupied, it could pile up on her like this.
Writer/director Ceylan Ozgun Ozcelik does build to a cathartic climax but this is definitely a case of it’s the journey, not the destination. Spend a little time with Hasret and you’ll feel like you’re in a waking dream too.
