— Overview
The notes praise two virtues of the film, and they stop before a later table. Character names in that table are not used.
— Contents and key concepts
A 2007 film, and two titles
The Edge of Heaven, the notes begin — they also give the German title Auf der anderen Seite, as they write it — is a 2007 film by Fatih Akin. It was shown at the 10th Seoul Women’s Film Festival under the English title The Edge of Heaven. It also won the Best Screenplay prize at Cannes in 2007, and, they write, it was the work that firmly established Akin as a director of art cinema.
Akin is a German of Turkish origin, and he keeps making films that grow out of the second-class, marginal, overlapping identity of his origins.
Violence that first kills the weak
The film’s first virtue, they write, is that it does not forget the sex of physical violence, across nationality, age, and class. Even when the struggle is an armed one, against ignorance and poverty, what violence first kills — leaving purpose aside — is always women, or the weak.
Women who rescue women, and a watchman at the edge
The second virtue is this: a male lead is brought in to help resolve that, yet he is kept to the side, in a low voice, as background. Themes that move people — forgiveness and reconciliation, religion and the like — are stirring, but they also often jumble the order, and leave someone out. In this film the man does not step forward as a hero and raise his voice; room is made for women to rescue women. The male lead sits in the place of a watchman, keeping the edge of heaven.
The accumulated ten-year history of the Seoul International Women’s Film Festival, they add, is also a path that carefully opens the possibility of solidarity to a male director. And this film, at least, performs that role to the full, neither too little nor too much. The notes leave the film at that praise, before a later table of names and later turns of the plot. The same Korean report, written out more fully, is on CampusDown.
Sources
- The notes, a student reading of Fatih Akin’s The Edge of Heaven: a 2007 film shown in Seoul, a Cannes screenplay prize, violence that first kills the weak, and women who rescue women.
Last updated: 15 November 2026
Frequently asked questions
How do the notes introduce the film?
They give the Korean title 천국의 가장자리, the German title Auf der anderen Seite as they write it, and the English title The Edge of Heaven, under which it was shown at the 10th Seoul Women’s Film Festival. It is a 2007 film by Fatih Akin. It also won the Best Screenplay prize at Cannes in 2007, and, they write, firmly established Akin as a director of art cinema. Akin is a German of Turkish origin, and he keeps making films that grow out of a second-class, marginal, overlapping identity.
What is the first virtue they name?
The film does not forget the sex of physical violence, across nationality, age, and class. Even in armed struggle against ignorance and poverty, what violence first kills, they write, leaving purpose aside, is always women, or the weak.
What is the second virtue, and where do they stop?
A male lead is brought in to help resolve that, yet he is kept to the side, in a low voice, as background. Themes such as forgiveness, reconciliation, and religion often stir people, but they also often jumble the order and leave someone out. Here the film does not step forward as a hero raising his voice; it makes room for women to rescue women. The male lead sits as a watchman at the edge of heaven. The accumulated ten-year history of the Seoul International Women’s Film Festival, they add, is also a path that carefully opens the possibility of solidarity to a male director, and this film performs that role to the full, neither too little nor too much. Character names and later plot in a recap table are not taken up here.
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