Miracle in Cell No.7

This was one of the first foreign films I had ever seen, and it had a heartbreaking storyline. Especially in a foreign language such as Turkish, which I hear daily from the variety of soap operas my mother and grandmother watched. It felt nice to watch a foreign film in a language I recognized a few phrases in.

It all revolves around the separation between a father who is on the autism spectrum and his adorable little daughter. The father’s love and determination to make his little girl happy are so evident and so emotional. They show such a strong connection throughout the movie. I admire this little girl’s bravery throughout the film because if I were in her situation, I would be depressed. This father-daughter duo’s difficulties were so challenging to watch, yet the film was fascinating.

The little girl, Ova’s mother, had passed away, so she has a very close bond with her father. She leaned towards her grandmother to ask why her father is the way he is. It was heartbreaking that she had to ask her grandmother about her father’s uncontrollable speech and behavior. She would ask why her father is not like the other fathers, but the grandmother said, “You’re right. He isn’t like the other fathers.” She was trying to reassure Ova that she shouldn’t feel ashamed of him being her father.

The part where Ova wanted this little backpack and the father, Memo, did what he could to try and get it for her, but he had no money for it. When they went back later that day, some other father-daughter duo was buying it. When Memo was trying to get it back, the other father slapped Memo across the face. That was a scary interaction Ova had to witness at such a young age. She wasn’t upset she didn’t get the backpack but because another man hit her father.

Memo had a great, loving personality in the movie, despite his condition.  Unfortunately, the scariest part happened and affected Memo. He was playing with the little daughter who bought the backpack, and she ended up slipping off a rocky platform and dying. He was trying to warn her to be careful, but there was not a whole lot he could’ve done by then. Then the crowd realized the little girl died and took him into prison for a murder he didn’t even commit.

It was very heartbreaking when the daughter and the grandmother couldn’t see him at first. While that happened, they were beating him up, thinking he had killed the little girl. He had no control to defend himself. If anyone went near him, he’d be scared and cover his face.

This father suffered a few beatdowns over something he didn’t do. I could not imagine the pain he suffered, especially when he called for his daughter in prison. However, Ova had such determination at her age that I could not admire her more. She did everything she could to get the witness who saw the interaction between Memo and the little girl to prove her father’s innocence.

Everyone at the prison doesn’t understand Memo’s condition except the people that he can’t see. People thought he killed a little girl; well, it felt like he was dying by everyone’s punishment towards him, and he couldn’t save himself. The head commanders are determined to put him on the death penalty, which I thought was unfair because he didn’t do anything wrong. It was pretty tricky when Ova saw his injuries when she was finally able to see him.

Later, the men in the prison formed a bond with Memo and finally understood his condition, which was heartwarming. But especially when Ova finally saw him, it was an even more emotional exchange. It was tough to watch when the grandmother died because she was all Ova had left, family-wise, way before. Ova was worried that if her dad didn’t get out, she wouldn’t have anyone to care for her.

The grandmother would reassure her that she could take care of her. However, another guy took Memo’s place and got hanged instead, which was very sad. But it was easier to accuse him because he had a more complicated past, and it was more believable to kill him.

Memo escaped from prison with his daughter. It was a beautiful moment when the older man took his own life to save the father-daughter bond between Ova and Memo. I recommend this movie to others because it tells a challenging yet uplifting story about the lovable bond between a father and daughter.