By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 5 cats
Director: Asghar Farhadi
Starring: Amir Jadidi | Fereshteh Sadre Orafaiy | Mohsen Tanabandeh | Sahar Goldoust
Original language title: Ghahreman
Country: france, iran
Year: 2021
Running time: 127
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11777738/reference
Michael says: “Asghar Farhadi is the master of the ethical quandary. His complex stories put people in situations where they just can’t win, whether they are trying to do good, or acting in their own self-interest. And that’s the real beauty of his writing: there are really no villains… no bad guys. Everyone is just thoroughly human. On a weekend furlough from prison for defaulting on a debt, Rahim and his lady friend Farkhondeh try unsuccessfully to turn in some gold coins that she found for cash to pay off his debtor. Unfortunately, there isn’t enough to cover the debt, so Rahim decides to do the right thing and see if he can find the original owner of the coins.Tis decision sparks aa chain of events that turn him into a hero. Throughout the film, Rhaim exhibits the agonizing movie trait of consistency making the wrong decision, or letting others make the decision for him. Those around him, whether his son, his girlfriend, his debtor, the prison official, or a charity that help to raise money to cover his debt to get him released from prison, all have their own motives for their actions, the the complicated web of motivations only serve to put Rahim in a more and more challenging position.
“How Farhaid manages to spin this complex tale while (mostly) avoiding contrivances for the sake of the story is nothing short of masterful. Amir Jadidi embodies Rahim with an easy, soft-spoken charm, reeling you in to root for him even as you shake your head as he gets himself deeper and deeper into a bad situation. Stone-faced Mohsen Tanabandeh portrays the unforgiving debtor with strident conviction, but not without humanity, elevating him from the vengeful victim, to something much more three-dimensional. Sahar Goldoust brings a lot of motivation and nuance to the often thankless role of the girlfriend, helped by Farhadi’s integration of a mini storyline exploring Farkhonheh’s challenging family living situation, and the rigid societal conventions in modern day Iran.. In addition to the human exploration, Farhadi also explores the motivations and complexities of institutions like the prison and the charity. How he is able to integrate all of these many nuanced perspectives and motivations in under two hours is nothing short fo masterful. Sound design and cinematography are top notch as well, as you feel as if you are on the busy streets of Shiraz, amidst the shops and traffic. A HERO is his best work since his award-winning A SEPARATION, and that’s saying a lot since his output since then has all been terrific. 5 cats”
Julie says: “This was a very good story and well executed with excellent performances- Also cinematography. Having been to the middle east (Turkey) twice, I saw similar terrain and look about things in this movie. It seemed spot on in realistically capturing all of the kinds of people and places. Loved the little boy dancing in that one scene. The tea always there, like a character. That is a true thing. 5 cats here as well.”