Ataturk film draws Turkish crowds, controversy

I think it is foolish that someone in a nation's history can be beyond reproach. What does everyone else think?

As an American married to a Turk, and with an oldest son married to a Turk, I can say it is best to tread lightly when talking about Kemal Ataturk.  The man did some phenomenal things for his country, dragging it into the twentieth century.   He is held to a level in his country possibly higher than we hold George Washington here.  I agree everyone has skeletons in their closet, but look a Turk in the eye and suggest this about their beloved leader.

This doesn't surprise me one bit. Turkey has laws that punish its citizens for criticizing "turkishness" (whatever that means). Even worse, YouTube along with thousands of other websites are blocked by the Turkish government. Turkey is as democratic as the US is authoritarian.   

Hmmmm a human view on a man those progrom for a unified nomadic people included the horrendous genocide of hundreds of thousands of others who lived peacefully on the Anatolian land for thousands of years....those success in his methods gave inspiration and helped model, another leader...Adolf Hilter to wreck the genocides he did....i bet they didnt show enough!

All leaders have faults, and leaders who create countries from nothing have major faults and ugly ways, i am very sure if a real unbiased historian did his biographical movie most turks would be buring the historian's effigy.

Although, Ataturk did unify the nomads, the cost of life is sinful and often swept under the rug in shame...verses acknowledgment and swearing not to repeat the acts. i know they didnt show enough if the Turks are upset by the depiction of his alcoholism!

may the memory of all those killed in the genocides, death marchs and fires of Symrna be ever eternal! may such crimes against humanity never reoccur.

"Admirers say he created a model nation that shows that democracy and Islam can blend. He embarked on a series of radical reforms aimed at turning overwhelmingly Muslim Turkey into a European-style democracy — abolishing the Ottoman caliphate, restricting Islamic dress and replacing the Arabic script with the Roman alphabet. "he also restricte religion teaching. this Ataturk's democracy. Plain blindfold and turture.

I would love to see this movie because in Turkey Atataurk is regarded as above god.

Ataturk tried to blindly westernize his nation but 99% of Turks are true believing Muslims and there is the contradiction. It is good for a nation to be nationlaistic but personality cult should not be a part of that.

The womanizing part, I read somewhere many years ago that he died from syphilis . Anyway, Turks just worship him and I am surprised that this film maker is cracking the bubble.