- Director: Sinan Çetin
- Writer: Yavuz Tuğrul
- Genre : Comedy, Drama
- Production Year : 1982
- Cinematography: Sertaç Karan
- Music: Cahit Berkay
- Starring:
- İlyas Salman, Şener Şen,
- Pembe Mutlu, Ayşen Gruda,
- İhsan Yüce, Ahmet Mekin
- Studio: Kök Film (Engin Karadağ)
- World-wide (English title): Abbas in Flower
Çiçek Abbas is one of the most popular movies of the Turkish Cinema in the 80s and still tv channels showing this film on National TV. The film tells about friendship and rivalry of two minibus drivers Abbas and Şakir. The director Sinan Çetin, who was directed two films Bir Günün Hikayesi 1981 and Çirkinler de Sever 1981. Both movies won awards at the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival in 1983. The third film also took part in the same festival. But Çiçek Abbas movie won the nomination as Best Screenwriter. But this film which participated an unforgetable couple İlyas Salman and Şener Şen. They had already starred in the same movies such as: Kibar Feyzo (where Şener Şen played with Kemal Sunal, İlyas Salman played a supporting role), Hababam Sınıfı Dokuz Doğuruyor, Erkek Güzeli Şefil Bilo, Banker Bilo, Dolap Beygiri and Şekerpare.
Abbas (İlyas Salman) works as an assistant with Şakir (Şener Şen), who is a minibus driver. During the trip, Abbas sees a girl named Nazlı (Pembe Mutlu), and he falls in love with her. He dreams that he will marry her and will has a beautiful bus, which decorated with flowers.
Abbas sees an abandoned and dirty minibus on sale. He thinks that this will be his dream car. He decided to make money working as a mechanic. He bought this minibus and continued to fix in the garage. The Abbas’s dream will come true
In the cafe, Abbas is welcomed as a new driver, and also surprises Şakir. in this scene Şakir and Abbas make a Word duel. So most of the legendary quotes from the movie takes place and spoken in this scene:
A confrontation began between Abbas and Şakir, determining who works better as a minibus driver.
The another epic scene in the film, a conversation in a cafe. Şakir tells Abbas that if he overtakes him faster, then marry Nazlı.
Abbas dreaming where he marries Nazlı, but instead of him Şakir marries her. The next morning, Abbas discovers that details and wheels of the bus is stolen, expect the flowers. Abbas tries to find the missing things, but his attempts were unsuccessful.
Then the long-awaited wedding day has come for Şakir and Nazlı. However, Şükriye doesn’t agree that. She thinks that parts from Abbas’s bus in his garage. She informs to Abbas that stolen parts of his bus found. They restore each one. Driven up to building and Abbas feels that it’s too late. But Nazlı thought that he wanted to marry her. Abbas and Nazlı got married, but he left Şakir without wheels on the bus.
Filming locations of Abbas in Flower (Çiçek Abbas)
The film began filming in November 1981, but in difficult conditions due to heavy rainfall, which began in Istanbul. The artists traveled by bus or taxi to the Alibeyköy, Eyüpsultan district. Initially, the scenes of the film were to be filmed in a different district; Merter. They chose Alibeyköy with the consent of the director himself. Sinan Çetin, along with screenwriter Yavuz Turgul, traveled to this location, where it aroused great interest from local residents and found it suitable for filming due to the environmental conditions.
At first, director didn’t think that Şener Şen will suit because of his character Şakir, that he is one of the main characters. The reason was that he no longer want to play antagonists, but wanted to play exceptionally kind, and sometimes simple characters. Due to difficult weather conditions during shooting, İlyas Salman repeatedly stayed at the fan house in Alibeyköy. For him, who at the same time entered for his daughter in elementary school. This film is remembered as a special memory.
The film was edited by famous director Yılmaz Atadeniz, who collaborated with İlyas Salman in the late 1980s. İhsan Yüce got cold of his vocal cords due to weather conditions. Yazan Okay lent voice for him.
The background music for film was composed by Cahit Berkay. In the scene, “the drunk conversation” between Abbas and Şakir we hear İbrahim Tatlıses’s song «Seni Yakacaklar».
The film has a more dramatic atmosphere of that time, where the friendship and enmity of both heroes are mixed. Çiçek Abbas marked a turning point in İlyas Salman‘s career. You should watch this movie. It’s worth it.
Author: Anna Järvinen – İlyas Salman and Şener Şen – Abbas in Flower (Çiçek Abbas 1982)