Sıfır Bir began as a scrappy Adana-set web series (2016–2019) before director Kadri Beran Taşkın brought it to the big screen. The film (released Jan 10, 2020 by CGV Mars) continues the series’ story​. Set against the dust-choked streets of southern Turkey, it follows former gang-leaders-turned-entrepreneurs Savaş, Cihat and Azad as they attempt to build a new life in İzmir. (The IMDb entry calls it Zero Zone, rating it 6.4/10​

Background & Production

Kadri Beran Taşkın directs and co-wrote Sıfır Bir, produced by local filmmaker Doğal Deniz. The movie comes from the indie production house Sıfır Bir Yapım (the same team behind the YouTube/BluTV series). The entire Adana cast (led by Savaş Satış as Savaş) filmed on real streets and alleys of Adana and İzmir, lending the film a documentary-like authenticity. As one Turkish critic notes, this isn’t glossy escapism: it’s “Türkiye’nin en iddialı, en gerçek, en sert internet dizisi” (Turkey’s most ambitious, real and hard-hitting internet series), and the film keeps that gritty tone​. The distributor was CGV Mars, and the film runs a tight 98 minutes.

Plot & Characters

After an epic prison brawl wraps up the series, the film opens with Savaş (Savaş Satış) – once Adana’s fearsome gang boss – leading his two best friends, Cihat (Onur Akbay) and Azad (Mehmet Elmas), into a new life. They’ve fled Adana, opened a weapons-free car wash in İzmir, and sworn off violence. For a moment it works: they’re hopeful “good guys” with rosy dreams of a quiet future. But the plot quickly pivots. A little streetwise girl, Melek (child actress Hiro Hami), turns up badly beaten and traumatized after criminals torment her family. Savaş and the crew can’t ignore her plea. In true revenge-thriller fashion, they decide to hunt down the men who hurt Melek, setting off a violent manhunt.

• Savaş (Savaş Satış) – The former gang-leader and de facto “big brother” of the group. He’s tough, pensive and fiercely protective of friends and innocents. Savaş wants redemption, but his intensity means he’s always on the edge.
• Cihat (Onur Akbay) – Loyal lifelong friend. More hot-headed and sentimental than Savaş, Cihat provides muscle (and occasional comic relief) when push comes to shove. He believes in family and loyalty above all.
• Azad (Mehmet Elmas) – The quiet third member. Azad (introduced late in the TV series) is calmer, more philosophical, yet still a fighter. He adds depth to the trio’s dynamic.
• Melek (Hiro Hami) – A traumatized young girl who becomes the film’s emotional catalyst. Vulnerable yet brave, she elicits our sympathy and kicks off the heroes’ vigilante spree.
• Samet Hanoğlu (Hakan Aydın) – A sleazy local gangster and human trafficker, Samet is the film’s main antagonist. Charming and ruthless, he embodies the “bad guys” the heroes must face. (Hakan Aydın’s Samet brings a chilling presence that contrasts with the protagonists’ wounded idealism.)

Together, these characters replay the classic “good vs. bad” dynamic. The heroes aren’t cartoon saints—they’re ex-cons with scars—but the script clearly draws moral lines. We watch them skillfully elude the law and beat up anyone who crosses them. As a Turkish reviewer notes, this group combo works because the film feels lived-in: “action, acting, and fight-scene details have all been meticulously crafted” with “no fake vibe”.

Performances & Cast

The cast is mostly non-professional actors from Adana, which lends authenticity but can make delivery uneven. Savaş Satış (the actor who shares the character’s name) dominates the screen with a natural bravado – he is Adana on film. Onur Akbay (as Cihat) is energetic and intense, while Mehmet Elmas (“Azad”) provides a steady, stoic counterweight. The standout newcomer is Hiro Hami as Melek, whose innocence and fear ground the story. Hakan Aydın’s Samet is convincingly sleazy; he slithers around with toxic charisma.

Critics praised this raw cast. Beyazperde’s Banu Bozdemir writes that “the acting…has been meticulously presented,” emphasizing the absence of any “falsos” or false notes​. The performances feel lived-in and unvarnished. Of course, some deliveries feel rough around the edges (unsurprising for an indie project), but the overall effect is genuine. The actors sell their characters’ loyalty and desperation, which hooks the viewer even through the film’s darkest violence.

Cinematography & Visual Style

Ali Yılmaz (the series’ longtime cinematographer) returns for the film, and the look is relentlessly gritty. Camerawork often feels handheld and documentary-like, as if you’re ducking behind garbage cans beside the heroes. The color palette favors dusty browns and flashbulb bursts of neon: paint-peeling alleyways, dank interiors and roaring nighttime highway chases all contribute to a sooty texture.

The result is immersive realism. In fact, Bozdemir points out that Sıfır Bir’s aesthetic shares a “gerçeklik damarı” (sense of reality) with the Adana documentary Benim Varoş Hikayem​. Scenes of violence – from street shootouts to savagely choreographed fistfights – are filmed with unflinching clarity. The critic notes that “the detail in the fight scenes and action has been carefully crafted”​. You can feel the bullets whizzing and knuckles crunching. The violence is graphic and relentless: this is no sugar-coated caper. For viewers, the effect is visceral: you’re not watching guns for fun, you’re watching people get hurt.

Musically, Esat Bargun’s score (and some rap tracks) pulse through key scenes, heightening the adrenaline. (Turkish rap star Gazapizm even contributes a theme, adding to the film’s urban grit.) Overall, the film’s visual and audio style relentlessly aims for authenticity. It’s stylistically consistent with the series, but turned up to eleven – cinema scope rather than YouTube frame.

Reception & Ratings

Sıfır Bir has polarized viewers. Turkish critics generally note its strengths in realism and energy but caution about its brutality. On Beyazperde.com, the site’s editorial score is 3.5/5​, while user ratings are far higher (about 4.1/5 from 549 votes). That reflects a fanbase passionate about the series and willing to forgive rough edges. An international aggregator like IMDb (as “Zero Zone”) shows a 6.4/10 rating (from ~1.5K votes)​, indicating a lukewarm but positive reception abroad. Rotten Tomatoes has no formal Tomatometer score (no reviews), though its synopsis notes the familiar hook – “former gang members attempt to leave their illegitimate lives behind… However, the past comes back to haunt them”​.

Critically, the film is often described as “uncompromising.” Some viewers balk at the violence and moral ambiguity. In fact, Bozdemir recalls social media complaints that the film “praises violence”​. She pushes back, insisting that the praise is for the film’s authenticity and sincerity – not an endorsement of crime. In her view, “we’re praising not the violence but the film’s authenticity… there is no false note”​. This debate—action vs. message—mirrors typical urban-crime drama discussions. International viewers should be aware: this is a tough, street-level movie; it demands you accept its world, which is anything but sanitized.

Box Office & Distribution

Domestically, Sıfır Bir performed respectably for a low-budget local action film. In its opening weekend it drew 280,711 viewers and grossed ₺5,448,347 (TL)​, coming in strong behind family animation hits. By the end of its run it had earned roughly ₺15,463,795​ in Turkey (about $2.5M USD). It faced stiff competition—kids’ films and comedies dominated that January—but held its own. The movie’s gritty genre means it never aimed to be a record-breaker, but it recouped its costs.

After theaters, Sıfır Bir found new life on streaming. It’s available on Amazon Prime Video in Turkey (and some international Amazon markets)​. The Prime listing, interestingly, even plastered the 6.4 IMDb rating on its page​ – a nod to its cult notoriety. (It doesn’t appear on Netflix or BluTV to our knowledge, but it had a BluTV series lineage.) For fans of the series, the film’s availability on streaming means easy access. Internationally, the English-subbed version (“Zero Zone”) can be rented through some global services, though it hasn’t seen wide theatrical release outside Turkey.

Verdict

Sıfır Bir: Bir Zamanlar Adana’da delivers exactly what its die-hard fans want: an in-your-face, high-octane crime saga soaked in local color. It nailed its production goals of realism and action. The raw performances and unglamorous cinematography make the violence feel real, and viewers get the strong sense that this is life on the street, not a Hollywood fantasy​. However, that same authenticity means the story is simple and the content is brutal. If you came looking for character complexity or stylized action like John Wick, you might be disappointed. The script is relatively thin, and the bloodshed can be overwhelming.

For international viewers, Sıfır Bir offers a vivid slice of Turkish urban crime storytelling. It’s an engaging watch if you’re prepared for its sweat-and-blood atmosphere. The production value exceeds typical indie standards, but it’s still unmistakably a low-budget, small-scale project. Fans of gritty cinema will appreciate the film’s sincerity, while others may find it too raw. In the end, Sıfır Bir earns points for heart and authenticity more than for broad appeal.

Overall Rating: 7/10.

This score reflects a solid, intense genre entry – entertaining for its thrills and grit, with some rough edges. It’s highly recommended for fans of the original series or anyone intrigued by street-level crime dramas (viewer discretion advised).