Kedi (film about Istanbul cats)

I saw "Kedi" in Edinburgh tonight. Really enjoyable, lots of
beautiful cats and superb aerial photography of Istanbul that
shows it in a way I'd never imagined, and it makes a really
interesting point. While there are housecats in Istanbul,
someone near the end points out that they lose their "catness"
that way; the urban free-range setup does something unique
for both the cats and the people. They're not really feral,
more collectively owned, and result is that they glue the
community together very effectively - the cats know which
humans to go to and the humans bond around caring for their
local cat gang (at an extreme, one cat had persuaded one bloke
to be his veterinary transport and insurance provider, taking
him in every two weeks for months on end, while the cat would
climb over creeper branches to get in to upper-floor flats of
several neighbours by James-Bond-like athletic feats for a
choice of food and attention).

Several people comment that this human-cat ecosystem is
endangered by what's happening to Istanbul. With ever bigger
buildings and ever less dirt and green space, it's getting
much harder for cats to survive using the instincts they
evolved with.

It's warm-hearted film I think everybody here would like.
(My one reservation was the music, which I found rather
bland and anonymous, but I notice that more than most).

It has the most spectacular feline shouting match you'll
ever have heard.

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