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Absence :: Ali Mosaffa's mystical thriller
An Iranian man, while investigating into his father's youth in Prague, finds himself in the shoes of a third man who is almost dead and happens to be his half-brother. Absence is an attempt to shed light on a forgotten corner..

‘Cafe’ :: Review :: Screened at 64th Thessaloniki Int. Film Festival 2023
May seem absurdist, but it is at least partially autobiographical. Like his countryman Jafar Panahi, a ban on filmmaking didn’t stop Mihandoust and, in the three years he was waiting for the sentence to be enacted, he..

Stockholm International Film Festival Awards 2023
Best Film: “The Settlers” by Felipe Gálvez Haberle. In a remarkable triumph, Chilean maestro Felipe Gálvez’s brutal western clinched the coveted Best Film award. The film delves into the annals of Chilean colonization and..

36th TIFF :: Tokyo 2023 :: Winners
Family drama Snow Leopard, directed by the late Tibetan filmmaker Pema Tseden, has won the Tokyo Grand Prix, the top prize at this year’s Tokyo Film Festival. Tatami by Zar Amir Ebrahimi and Guy Nattiv won the Special Jury Prize, also the award for Best Actress for Zar Amir..

Tokyo Film Festival 2023
The Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF), set to run October 23 to November 1, revealed the lineup for its 36th edition, including 20 world premieres across its two competition strands. The festival features 15 titles in its main Competition section led by Japan and China..

GoCritic! Animest 2023 :: Review :: The Siren
As shown through the eyes of a teenage boy, Sepideh Farsi's animated film shows both the horrors and kindness that wartime brings. A striking, bleakly beautiful account of living in a war zone, which captures a traumatic and..

LONDON 2023 :: Review :: Celluloid Underground
Unsuitable films were burned after the Islamic regime took over Iran. But one man stashed away reels and reels of banned and western movies – to thrill a new generation in secret film clubs.. A salute to the underground film lovers..

Golshifteh Farahani On the Shocking News of One of Iran's most prominent film-makers' Murder
"I did my very first movie 'The Pear Tree' with him when I was 14 years old. He was One of the most incredible directors of Iran and a great friend throughout these 26 years"..

Noted Iranian film director and his wife found stabbed to death in their home
Fans of the celebrated Iranian film director Dariush Mehrjui have woken to the shocking news of his murder at home by an unknown assailant. He was 83. He was a co-founder of Iran’s film new wave in the early 1970s..

ORCA :: A Protest Against Hate, Intolerance and Dehumanization
Iranian swimmer (Taraneh Alidoosti) fights abuse and oppression with an “Orca” as her Spirit Animal. This drama ... is a genuinely inspiring story, in part because it doesn't adhere to the formula we might expect..

Copenhagen Cinematheque :: 'Leila's Brothers' :: Film of the Month in October
Iranian cinema surprised at last year's Cannes festival – this time with a screwball comedy about finances and love, family relations and generational gaps..

LOCARNO 2023 :: Radu Jude :: Interview :: It's Later Than You Think
Jude once again proves himself to be one of the most original auteurs of our times. Moreover, his lack of fear at being controversial – or simply wrong – allows him to create cinema on an extraordinary scale that does not necessarily..

OSCARS 2024 :: European titles submitted for the Oscars race
European countries reveal their titles submitted for the Best International Feature Film Award at the 2024 Academy Awards. With the 96th Academy Awards ceremony scheduled to take place in Hollywood on 10 March, 2024..

Oscars 2024 :: Denmark Picks ‘The Promised Land’ for Best International Feature Category
Denmark has picked its 2024 Oscar contender, selecting period epic The Promised Land as its official Academy Award entry in the best international feature category..

Oscars 2024 :: Sweden selects Milad Alami’s 'Opponent' as Oscar candidate
“We are very proud and honoured to be the Swedish submission to the Oscars this year! I am personally extra proud of our fantastic actors and our team.” Alami said. The film produced by Annika Rogell for Tangy is also nominated for..

Female Freedom Fighters :: The Politics of Women's Hair
Why the World’s First Feminist Revolution is Happening in Iran. A female revolution is underway in Iran. The mullahs are fighting back with brutal force. A year after it all began, women aren't giving up..

Oscars 2024 :: 'The Night Guardian' :: Iran Oscar entry
Iran has submitted Reza Mirkarimi’s The Night Guardian for Best International Film category at the 96th Academy Awards, in a move that will likely prompt pushback from the country’s dissident film community..

Venice 2023 :: ‘Green Border’ Review: Agnieszka Holland’s Humanitarian heart-in-mouth thriller Masterpiece
A modern-day resistance movie dealing with a new kind of fascism, and very much of a piece with Holland's previous classics 'In Darkness'..

Venice 2023 Winners :: Full List :: Golden Lion Goes To Yorgos Lanthimos For ‘Poor Things’
The 80th Venice Film Festival handed out its awards and Yorgos Lanthimos has clinched the top prize with his latest feature Poor Things, starring Emma Stone; Hamaguchi, Sarsgaard..

Venice 2023 :: ‘Evil Does Not Exist’ Review :: Ryusuke Hamaguchi Delivers A Constantly Surprising Film
Nature cannot be evil, only indifferent. But what about us? Hamaguchi is not interested in taking the easy road to a satisfactory resolution. On the contrary; his story runs up hard against..

Venice 2023 :: ‘The Beast’ Review :: Bertrand Bonello’s Trippy Sci-Fi
Is it sci-fi? Is it a romance? Is it a mystery? Is it a drama? It’s all these things together and none of them at the same time. It is moving and alienating, intellectual and visceral, it is challenging and confusing but it’s undeniably a..

Venice 2023 :: Woody Allen Gets Rapturous Reception :: Talks Love Of European Cinema; Life-Career Luck..
Allen was last in Venice in 2007, with Cassandra’s Dream starring Colin Farrell and Ewan McGregor, and prior to that was invited in 1995 to receive a Career Golden Lion, but did..

VENICE 2023 Giornate degli Autori :: Interview: Ayat Najafi :: Director of The Sun Will Rise
The director talks about his Iranian-shot film, which documents the trials and tribulations of a theatre company, while outside, in the streets, youngsters are demonstrating..

Venice 2023 Flash Mob :: In Solidarity with Iranian pro-democracy protests
Jane Campion, Damien Chazelle, Zar Amir Ebrahimi and Guy Nattiv joined a flash mob on the Venice Film Festival’s red carpet on Saturday in support of the Woman, Life, Freedom protests in Iran..

Venice 2023 (Orizzonti) :: ‘Tatami’ Review :: Potent Political Sport Thriller
Billed as the first feature film to be co-directed by an Iranian and an Israeli filmmaker, “Tatami” goes all in with a lean and tense narrative that is part sport movie, part political thriller — with both parts equally neatly realized..

Variety (EXCLUSIVE) :: Iranian Filmmaker Ali Asgari Banned From Traveling & Making Movies
Ali Asgari, whose latest film “Terrestrial Verses” (co-directed by Alireza Khatami) world premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, has been banned by the Iranian authorities from leaving the country and directing movies until further notice..

Venice 2023 :: ‘Priscilla’ Gets 7-Minute-Plus Ovation In Venice
Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla got a rousing response at its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on Monday evening. The pic, a biopic of Priscilla Presley, who was in attendance for the movie based on the memoir she co-authored, scored..

Venice 2023 :: ‘Poor Things’ Review :: Emma Stone In Yorgos Lanthimos’ Glorious Paean To Freedom
Flamboyant, florid, fantastic, and freakish, this might well be one of the most unique movies you’ll ever see. Screening in competition in Venice and certainly one of the most eagerly..

Venice 2023 :: The Promised Land (Bastarden) :: Mads Mikkelsen At His Staunch, Heroic Best
A classic Scandinavian drama about human frailty, The Promised Land is earthy, enjoyable stuff: an expansive, sweeping epic with hope in its heart and dirt under its nails..

Venice 2023 :: ‘El Conde’ Review :: Pablo Larraín’s Latest Is A Bold, Wildly Irreverent Sensational Creation
A madly inspired reinvention of events embedded in the notion that longtime Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet became a vampire who ultimately tires of life and wants out after..

Venice Film Festival 2023 :: All Of Deadline’s Movie Reviews
The Venice Film Festival began August 30 with opening-night movie 'Comandante', an Italian World War II drama.. Deadline is on the ground to watch all the key films. Here is a compilation of our reviews from the fest..

Lars Von Trier Makes A Social Media Plea For A Girlfriend/Muse
He Says He Has “A Few Decent Films” Left In Him. Should we actually be surprised when Lars von Trier goes on social media to post a video about his search for a new girlfriend? Will Lars von Trier find her, and thus, continue his life as a feature..

'SUBTRACTION' :: TORONTO STAR :: REVIEW
“They don’t just look like us, It’s like we’re clones.” Seeing is believing: after getting a peek at the look-alikes in question, skeptical but sympathetic Jalal can only agree that something spooky is going on..

Celebrated Iranian Filmmaker Receives Prison Sentence over "Leila’s Brothers"
Renowned filmmaker and screenwriter Saeed Roustayi has been handed a six-month prison sentence, along with supplementary penalties, by the Tehran Revolutionary Court, as revealed by..

LOCARNO 2023 Competition
Review: ‘Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World’
Radu Jude’s eighth fiction feature seems to imply that the apocalypse might not arrive as a spectacular big bang, but rather as a flood of stupidity – and it’s actually already here..

Locarno Film Festival Awards :: ‘Critical Zone,’ the Film the Iranian Government Doesn’t Want to Be Seen, Wins Big at Swiss Fest
The hype is real: Ali Ahmadzadeh’s “Critical Zone” (“Mantagheye bohrani”) has picked up the top Golden Leopard at Locarno. ..

LOCARNO 2023 Competition
Review: 'Critical Zone'
Ali Ahmadzadeh’s third film defies Iran’s authoritarian regime, painting the portrait of a tired and unpredictable society which now believes in nothing but artificial paradises..

'Silent House' :: Award winner at Melgaco film festival 2023
“My brother and I weren’t able to leave (Iran) due to false and unfair accusations that were made against us. We lost many opportunities that our film created for us due to the ban”..

IFFR 2021 Limelight :: Review: 'Mitra'
37 years after her daughter was executed in Iran, Haleh finds the woman who betrayed her. The traitor, now a loving mother herself and just arrived in the Netherlands, does not recognize Haleh and trusts her as an older and wiser countryman. While Haleh is plotting her..

Iranian Authorities Pressure ‘Critical Zone’ Director to Pull Out of Locarno Film Festival
The film, shot without Iranian authorities’ permission before the “Woman, Life, Freedom” revolution in Iran, is billed as an artistic reflection on the anger and the rage of the young generation of Iranians..

VENICE 2023 :: 30 Aug. - 9 Sep.
Competition :: Out of Competition
Fewer Hollywood stars and more high-quality films from all over the world will grace the Venice agenda. The festival is celebrating its 80-year anniversary with a jam-packed programme and zero defections by independent productions..

Milan Kundera: From the JOKE to INSIGNIFICANCE
The only documentary about Milan Kundera's legacy. Why were Milan Kundera's books so successful all over the world? Why did he move to France and started writing in French? What is behind the fact that Kundera banned his French books from being translated to Czech?..

Films :: Reviews :: 'Oppenheimer' :: More than just a bookish geek
Nolan’s Oppenheimer barely qualifies as a biopic... Instead it’s a movie investigating the nature of power: how it is created, how it is kept in balance, and how it leads people into murky quandaries that refuse simplistic answers..

'Seven Winters in Tehran' :: Exposing the silenced voices of women in Iran
Under trial for stabbing to death the man she was assaulted by in Tehran, Reyhaneh says it’s been self-defense, «What else could I do?» she says to the judge, and she is replied: «You should let him rape you. And then sue him»..

KARLOVY VARY 2023 Competition :: Review :: 'Empty Nets'
Behrooz Karamizade's debut feature shows how even the most ordinary Iranian citizens are only ever just a few strokes of bad luck and desperate decisions away from losing everything..

IFP Exclusive :: Cinema :: Iranian filmmakers slam court ruling against actress Azadeh Samadi
The Iranian Cinema Directors Association and the Cinema Producers Union have objected to a court ruling against famous actress Azadeh Samadi for ignoring the Hijab rule..

Ali Abbasi :: Interview :: On the Films that Shaped him
"What I know about film, I learned at Cinemateket in Stockholm." A discussion about Ali Abbasi's entry into the world of film and the cinema experience as well as .. - and his ambivalent relationship with Iranian cinema..

The computers are taking over :: Actors Strike Could Hinge On AI
As talks between the actors union and the studios come to down to the final days before the extension of SAG-AFTRA’s current contract expires, Artificial Intelligence has become a significant obstacle to any deal..

Will an Actors Strike Mean Empty Red Carpets at Venice and Toronto?
What if you held a red carpet and nobody came? For organizers of the fall film festivals — and studios planning splashy summer premieres — that nightmare scenario looks likely to come true after contract negotiations..

KARLOVY VARY 2023 Proxima :: Review :: Brutal Heat
Social surrealism flourishes in the Gen Z-centred coming-of-age road movie directed by debutant Albert Hospodarsky, whose graduation film Brutal Heat, also his feature-length directorial debut, has taken its first bow..

KARLOVY VARY 2023 Awards :: Stephan Komandarev's Blaga's Lessons wins the Crystal Globe
Among the winners of the festival's 57th edition are also Behrooz Karamizade's German-Iranian co-production 'Empty Nets' and Ernst De Geer's Nordic title 'The Hypnosis'..

Iran: Toomaj Salehi’s life is in danger! • Rapper faces the death penalty
Toomaj Salehi’s life is in danger after he bravely chose to stand with his people. He did not leave the side of Iranian women when they were alone. Let’s not leave his side while he is in prison. This film is about the revolutionary..

SHEFFIELD DOC FEST 2023 :: Review :: 'While We Watched'
A turbulent newsroom drama that intimately chronicles the working days of a broadcast journalist as he navigates a spiraling world of truth and disinformation. As factual reporting is in freefall globally, ‘While We Watched’ is..

Italy • Il Cinema Ritrovato • Ehsan Khoshbakht • Co-director and curator
For the 37th year, Il Cinema Ritrovato, taking place this year from 24 June-2 July in Bologna, will showcase films from the entire history of cinema. With a focus on collective viewing, the festival will present 470 movies..

TRANSILVANIA 2023 Awards :: Iranian film 'Like a Fish on the Moon' scoops the Transilvania Trophy
The first Iranian film to win Transilvania’s official competition impressed the jury with its original idea, while European victors included Family Time, Between Revolutions and Day of the..

KARLOVY VARY 2023 :: Provocative Experimental Cinema
The 57th edition of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (30 June - 8 July) has unveiled its full line-up, showcasing Cannes standouts and provocative experimental cinema, featuring 140 fiction and documentary..

Visions of Iran 2023 :: Iranian Film Festival Cologne :: 9. to 11.6.2023
For ten years, the Iranian Film Festival Cologne has been providing new and unusual insights into the isolated country. The 2023 edition is themed around “Woman, Life, Freedom” – at a time when protests by the Iranian people are being put..

Vienna Festival :: Defiant Iranian Actress Barred from Participating in Wiener Festwochen
Iran bars prominent actress Fatemeh Motamed-Arya, who voiced support for a wave of protests and unrest in the country last year, from traveling to Austria to participate in an art fest..

Cannes 2023 Competition :: Review :: Perfect Days
Wim Wenders’ fiction film at the festival is a delicate and slyly melancholic ode to the search for happiness.. Attentive to the world around him both in his free time and at work, Hirayama always notices its beauties, both unexpected..

Cannes 2023 Interview :: Ruben Östlund :: Cannes Competition jury president
After fulfilling his duties as Cannes Competition jury president, the 2022 Palme d’Or winner shared some thoughts on this once-in-a-lifetime experience..

Cannes Review :: Fallen Leaves :: A Charming, Bittersweet Romance
Few filmmakers warm the soul with such economy: Fallen Leaves is funny, heartbreaking, and only 82 minutes long. Two people living separate, lonesome lives meet and maybe fall in love––but there is beauty in that simplicity ..

Cannes 2023 Awards :: Four Daughters and The Mother of All Lies scoop Cannes’ Golden Eye
The jury applauds the courage and imagination of Kaouther Ben Hania and Asmae El Moudir, who boldly invent devices that renew the language of reality, exploring and confronting the chaos of the world..

‘Anatomy Of A Fall’ :: Wins Palme d’Or at 2023 Cannes Film Festival
French writer-director Justine Triet’s Anatomy Of A Fall has won the Palme d’Or at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. The Hitchcockian mystery thriller is about a woman, played by Sandra Hüller, accused of murder when her husband..

Cannes 2023 :: Killers of the Flower Moon :: Martin Scorsese’s Bitterest Crime Epic
Martin Scorsese triumphs yet again. A story about greed, corruption, and the mottled soul of a country that was born from the belief that it belonged to anyone callous enough to take it..

Cannes 2023 :: Perfect Days : interview with Wim Wenders
A deeply moving and poetic reflection on finding beauty in the everyday world around us. The idea was born in Tokyo and could not have been made anywhere else. I love it if a story and its setting belong together out of necessity..

Cannes 2023 :: Terrestrial Verses :: Life in totalitarian Iran in the satirical Terrestrial Verses
Daily life in Iran through nine stories. Terrestrial Verses portrays men, women, and children in apparently mundane situations in which the absurd comes to disrupt everything..

Cannes 2023 :: Godard par Godard :: In the Mind of a Trailblazer of Cinema
A Documentary Rich with Behind-the-Scenes Footage Captures How the Godard Persona Was as Fascinating as His Films. An hour-long movie looks at his life, through his work, in a way that any Godard fan will want to see..

Cannes 2023 :: Questioning the past with May December :: Todd Haynes
Todd Haynes' May December explores one of the great capacities of the human species: our categorical refusal to look ourselves in the face. Twenty years after their notorious tabloid romance gripped the nation, a married couple..

Cannes 2023 :: Bread and Roses :: Kabul as seen by Sahra Mani
In 2018, Sahra Mani‘s hard-hitting A Thousand Girls Like Me documented a young Afghan woman and incest victim in her quest for justice. In Bread and Roses, the Afghan director shines a light on how the women of Kabul are seeing..

Cannes 2023 :: Cate Blanchett shows solidarity with women of Iran
Actor Cate Blanchett made a statement at a Cannes Film Festival party by going barefoot to show her support for the women of Iran. The A-list actor, on hand to present “Holy Spider” star Zahra Amir Ebrahimi with a breakthrough..

Cannes 2023 :: Encounter with Atiq Rahimi :: Member of the Feature Films Jury
An interview with the member of the Feature Films Jury, who opens up about his creative process. Born into a “wealthy, peaceful, and bourgeois” Afghan family, Atiq Rahimi‘s life..

Cannes 2023 :: Competition :: About Dry Grasses :: Movie Review
Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s best feature since “Once Upon a Time in Anatolia”—flutters with all these pictorial qualities and emotional dispositions. A ravishingly cinematic piece of work that seems designed to spark animated debate..

Cannes 2023 :: Competition :: Four Daughters (Les Filles d'Olfa)
Kaouther Ben Hania employs a unique approach In Competition. While working on one of her films, she became caught up in a story she was listening to on the radio. The mother of four adolescent girls was recounting the tragic..

Cannes 2023 :: Liv Ullmann :: A Road Less Travelled
Divided in three chapters, this documentary film explores the iconic actor, writer, director, author and activist Liv Ullmann’s multifaceted life, and her extraordinary international career spanning over 66 years..

Cannes 2023 :: Anselm :: an interview with Wim Wenders
Here we discuss 'Anselm' with the Prolific director Wim Wenders who has two films in the Selection this year: a fictional feature film in Competition, Perfect Days, and a documentary Anselm, dedicated to the work of German visual artist..

Cannes 2023 lowdown update :: The lowdown on all the Cannes 2023 titles
This year’s Official Selection is heavy on big-name auteurs including former double Palme d’Or winner Ken Loach as well as Wim Wenders, Nanni Moretti, Hirokazu Kore-eda and Nuri Bilge Ceylan. These past winners will compete..

“Champions” :: Led by Woody Harrelson’s reliably spiky energy
"Some critics are saying the film is patronizing and making a mockery of the disabled community, but that’s not the case. The cast brings out the best in each other and all are true champions..”

The Two Popes :: Superbly acted and a lot of fun to watch
Can two Catholic men share the Papacy without driving each other crazy? Led by outstanding performances from its well-matched leads, The Two Popes draws absorbing drama from a pivotal moment in modern organized religion..

“They Make Me Vomit” :: Richard Dreyfuss On New Rules For Oscars
“This is an art form. It’s also a form of commerce, and it makes money, but it’s an art. No one should be telling me as an artist that I have to give in to the latest, most current idea of what morality is..”

CANNES 2023 :: Cannes Classics Pays Homage to Godard, Ozu, Hitchcock, Ullmann, Varda, Douglas, Lee
In keeping with tradition, the 2023 edition of Cannes Classics promises to be a feast for cineastes with tributes to global masters and restored versions of all-time classics..

‘Reading Lolita in Tehran’ Movie Hits Cannes Market :: Stars Zar Amir-Ebrahimi & Golshifteh Farahani
A long-anticipated adaptation of the 2003 bestselling novel “Reading Lolita in Tehran” by Azar Nafisi is hitting the Marché du Film at Cannes this month..

Asghar Farhadi Talks Uprising in Iran: ‘The Result Will Be Rewarding’
'The situation will not return to how it was before. And there is great hope in what happened. And I believe in this extraordinary uprising that occurred in Iran in the last few months..'

World War III :: Removal Of Director, Actor From Movie Billboard Over Protest Support
Iran's Ministry of Guidance is demanding the removal of the names of the director and one of the lead actors from a promotional billboard for a movie amid their public support for ongoing..

Death of a Filmmaker & The End of an Era in Iranian Cinema
Veteran filmmaker Kiumars Pourahmad (1949-2023) was one of the successful examples of Iranian ‘professional’ cinema, a storyteller who kept standing as far away from the ideological concerns of post-revolution Iran..

FIFDH GENEVA 2023 :: 'My Name Is Happy' :: Movie Review
Ayse Toprak and Nick Read's film tells the incredible story of Mutlu, a Kurdish teenager with a golden voice who miraculously survives an attempted murder. At age 19 Mutlu Kaya overcame the trauma of being shot..

OSCARS 2023 :: Navalny’s Plight in a Russian Prison Highlighted at Oscars
The fact that this documentary movie involves one of the most brazen incidents of state sponsored assassination in memory means this is a unique document of a very singular man. After almost being poisoned to death in 2020..

Oscars 2023 :: Final Predictions in 23 Categories
"Everything Everywhere All at Once" should dominate the winners list, but will it also win Best Picture? Fresh and original is the ticket for this year’s Oscars. That is if “Everything Everywhere” (A24) wins as many categories as we predict..

Berlinale 2023 :: Full Winners List
This year’s jury, headed by Kristen Stewart, gave the Golden Bear award to the French documentary “On the Adamant..” The Silver Bear for Best Lead Performance notably went to child star Sofia Otero for “20,000 Species of Bees.” Philippe Garrel's “The Plough” was..

Berlinale 2023 :: Niki Karimi :: "In Iran, I hope the arts and artists will experience a new era"
While at the Berlinale, the Iranian actress and director speaks, in an interview with "Le Monde", on the situation in her country, after five months of protests since the death of Mahsa..

BAFTA 2023 :: ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ Dominates BAFTA Awards With Seven Wins
“All Quiet on the Western Front” dominated the BAFTA Awards in London on Sunday night with a record-breaking seven wins for a film not in the English languag, including for Best Director..

Berlinale :: Retrospective 2023 :: „Coming of Age at the Movies“
The 2023 Retrospective is dedicated to being young and growing up as a collective cinematic experience. Noted international filmmakers from around the world have selected their coming-of-age film favourites..

Berlinale 2023 :: Golshifteh Farahani :: Talks Role Of Art In Iran
“In A Dictatorship Like Iran, Art Is Essential, It’s Like Oxygen.” Iranian actress Golshifteh Farahani, who is at the Berlin Film Festival as a member of Kristen Stewart’s jury, has talked passionately about the importance of art..

BERLINALE 2023 • Carlo Chatrian • Artistic director
Cineuropa talks to the Berlinale’s artistic director about the “new beginning” for the gathering, the state of world cinema and iconoclastic programming at the outset of the 73rd edition. “Europe is the place where filmmakers can still..

SIFF 2023 :: Shirin Ebadi :: Until We Are Free
This is the amazing, at times harrowing, simply astonishing story of a woman who would never give up, no matter the risks. The first Muslim woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, Shirin Ebadi has inspired millions around the globe..

Iranian film director ('Botox' & 'Retouch') threw away his film awards
Kaveh Mazaheri, who previously won two crystal simorghes at Iranian Fajr Film festival, threw them into the river. He, who is also the winner of the first prize at Torino Film Festival, released a video in which he says he will no longer make..

IFFR 2023 Awards :: 'Le spectre de Boko Haram' and 'Endless Borders' are the victors
Cyrielle Raingou’s documentary took home the Tiger Award, whilst Abbas Amini’s feature won the VPRO Big Screen Award, as the Dutch gathering celebrated its in- person comeback..

Robert Prize 2023 :: Here are all the winners
On Saturday evening, the year's best film, TV series, acting performances and much more were awarded. Ali Abbasi's thriller 'Holy Spider' grabs 11 statuettes at the awards ceremony where it completely swept the board..

Berlinale 2023 :: The Berlinale announces its jury members
The Berlinale has announced the full line-up of the juries for its 2023 edition. Competition Jury chair Kristen Stewart will be joined by Golshifteh Farahani, Valeska Grisebach, Radu Jude, Francine Maisler, Carla Simón and Johnnie To..

Henrik Nordbrandt :: A Poet's Odyssey
Henrik Nordbrandt (1945 – 2023) is widely regarded as one of the most important and celebrated poets in Scandinavia. His life with poetry was shaped by the many years he lived in Mediterranean countries, where “departures and arrivals are very existential,”..

Berlinale 2023 :: Solidarity with Ukraine and Iran
Film festivals are places that strengthen freedom of speech, freedom of expression, and peaceful dialogue. With the ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine, and the courageous protests in Iran.. the Berlinale stands in 2023..

Iran's women through 60 years :: Film history, sociology & popular culture
"Woman - life - freedom". That slogan has been used in the Iranian streets since September, and the message is aimed at the incumbent Islamic regime. The Iran protests have historical threads that go further back in Iranian cultural history..

Oscar 2023 :: 'The Red Suitcase' Bags Oscar Nomination
A short film by Luxembourg-based Iranian film director Cyrus Neshvad has been nominated for "Best Live Action Short Film" at the 95th Academy Awards. "My thoughts are with the Iranian women who are currently fighting for their rights and their freedom..

95th Academy Awards :: 2 Oscar nominations for Danish films
Simon Lereng Wilmont's documentary film ‘A House Made of Splinters’ is nominated in the Documentary Feature Category and the short film ‘Ivalu’ by Anders Walter and Pipaluk K. Jørgensen is nominated in the category for Live..

Sundance 2023 :: Iranian women take center stage at Sundance film festival
Movies by and about Iranian women took center stage at the Sundance film festival this weekend, as diaspora filmmakers reflected on female-led protests and the deadly challenges of censorship and resistance in their ancestral..

BERLINALE 2023 :: Unveils Forum titles for 2023 edition :: (16-26 Feb.)
The German festival has announced new European titles by names such as Claire Simon, Vlad Petri, Mehran Tamadon, Tomasz Wolski and Piotr Pawlus. The 28 titles look set to “celebrate the diversity of cinematic forms, approaches..

10th Prague Iranian Film Fest :: Starts in shadow of events in Iran
The focus of the festival is going to be on the main theme of all the uprisings that are happening at the moment, which is Women, Life, Freedom. The festival is taking place in Prague from January 11th to 15th, launching..

Corruption on earth :: Iran shortfilm
A short film about the human rights- abusing regime in Iran. The film shows a fictional award ceremony for the “best regime in the world”. The prize is awarded to Iran. Several production companies were involved in making the film, directed by Omid Mirnour..

‘Argentina, 1985’ :: Venice Review
A complex, rewarding drama which should be favoured by the politically-aware. Ricardo Darin gives an awards-worthy performance in Santiago Mitre’s rousing real-life courtroom thriller. 30,000 people disappeared during the Junta’s seven-year rule..

Suicide After "Freedom" :: Iranian Film Critic Commits Suicide After Being Released From Detention
Iranian film critic and director, Mohsen Jafari-Rad, 37, who had been arrested during anti-government protests a few weeks ago, committed suicide after being released..

Taraneh Alidoosti, the star of Oscar-winning film released on bail
The 38-year-old Iranian actor and the star of Oscar-winning film The Salesman, who was imprisoned almost three weeks ago, has been released on bail on Wednesday, said the actor's lawyer to the Iranian news agency Isna. ..

UPDATE(5) :: Defiance in Iran :: "Iran Protests Pass 100 Days"
Anti-government protests in Iran have passed their 100th day, even as demonstrators have been met with widespread arrests, brutal violence by police and executions. Thousands of protesters have been arrested and more than..

Celebrities In Iran Also Pay A Price For Supporting Protests
Ashkan Khatibi is one of scores of celebrities who have been detained for sympathizing with protesters or criticism of the government. Around fifty filmmakers and actors of Iranian cinema are currently in detention..

Robert De Niro & Jane Rosenthal Join Chorus Of Calls For Release Of Iranian Actress Taraneh Alidoosti
In a Tribeca statement signed by De Niro and his Tribeca Festival Co-Founder Jane Rosenthal, the pair demanded Taraneh's immediate release from the infamous Evin Prison in Tehran...

Iranian actor Taraneh Alidoosti arrested after criticism of death penalty
Taraneh Alidoosti, one of Iran’s most famous actors, has been detained by security forces in Tehran days after she criticised the state’s use of the death penalty against protesters..

'752 Is Not A Number' :: A Harrowing Look at One Man’s Search for Justice
Veteran director Babak Payami chronicles Canadian dentist Hamed Esmaeilion’s quest for justice in the aftermath of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, shot down in 2020 by the Iranian military..

'The Voice of Dust and Ash' :: Singing Truth to Power
The untold story of monumental artist and humanitarian Maestro Mohammad Reza Shajarian, hailed by NPR as "one of the 50 greatest voices of all time" and by the Wall Street Journal as "the most important Iranian.."

UPDATE(4) :: Defiance in Iran :: "Nationwide Revolution"
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Tickets On Sale Now!
Iranian Film Festival - San Francisco
September 17-18, 2022
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August 20-28
Karlovy Vary 2021
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VENICE 2021 Competition
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Berlinale 2021
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Bizarrely Intriguing
'The Oath' ('Ghasam')

By Deborah Young
hollywoodreporter.com, 4/29/2019

A woman organizes a busload of relatives to testify against her sister’s presumed murderer in Mohsen Tanabandeh’s drama.

One of those curious tales that suddenly sheds light on the darker corners of Iranian society, Mohsen Tanabandeh’s The Oath (screening at the Fajr Film Festival) plunges the viewer into the drama of a feudal judicial system.

It starts with the premise of an eye for an eye (the hanging of a murderer) and then introduces the age-old custom of the victim’s family accepting a pay-off in blood money that would let the killer get off scot-free.

Alternatively, if the family lets up pressure on the judge, the murderer may never stand trial at all. Though the story never really takes a definite moral stand one way or the other, it has enough drama and vivid characters to find festival favor.

This is the second feature by writer-director Tanabandeh, who made his directing debut with the 2015 comedy Guinness but is better known as an actor whose credits include his award-winning role as the son Azim in Afghanistan’s Oscar submission, Rona, Azim’s Mother.

One could argue that The Oath is hardly less surreal than the men who have to ride turkeys in Guinness. But here the stakes are much higher, particularly for the stalwart heroine Razieh (Mahnaz Afshar), and there is little in the way of comic relief.

Almost the entire film takes place in the close confines of a large bus which Razieh has rented at her own expense. She has rustled up the passengers from her close family – cousins, uncles, aunts, nephews and nieces -- to swear in court that Razieh’s brother-in-law killed his young wife in a moment of jealousy, as was witnessed by two employees on the couple’s farm. What looks like an open-and-shut case is anything but, and if Razieh doesn’t get her crew to court by 9 a.m. the next morning, her sister's killer will go free. Cajoling and threatening the family, she keeps them aboard the bus and blocks various attempts at mutiny and backing down.

More quaintness: women can’t take the oath unless they are the victim’s next-of-kin, so a good number of femmes on the bus are just along for the ride; however, some men seem to be able to take the oath twice. Local audiences probably know the rules, but more clarity would have been appreciated for non-Iranian viewers. Another complication is the on-going feud between family members over unrelated issues, like a brother who accidentally ran over someone else’s dog.

As the bus, driven by a surly relative, winds its way through hairpin turns on misty country roads, the mysterious atmosphere thickens to perceptible danger. Razieh’s furious husband Khosro (Saeed Aghakani) is following them by car at a distance; he is lobbying for the life of his brother, the accused farm owner. Razieh shouts him down at a rest stop.

The story tends to run away from Tanabandeh at a certain point, becoming increasingly complicated and emotionally overwrought without offering the expected dramatic returns. The turning point comes with a police re-enactment of the crime which stuns everyone; then all concludes abruptly in an unexpected climax which stops short of being exciting.

In the main role, Afshar shows an avenger’s unwavering determination, for whom hanging her brother-in-law amounts to a religious duty. But such one-track motivation ends up making her less credible and sympathetic.

Visually the single-set film often lacks excitement, and though the mountainous landscape outside the bus eventually gives way to desert, there are no rewarding glimpses of their destination, the fabled pilgrimage city of Mashhad.

Cast: Mahnaz Afshar, Saeed Aghakhani, Hassan Pourshirazi, Mehran Ahmadi
Director-screenwriter: Mohsen Tanabandeh
Producers: Elham Ghafouri, Jalil Shabani
Director of photography: Touraj Astani
Production designer: Babak Panahi
Costume designer: Farahnaz Naderi
Editor: Khashayar Movahedian
Composer: Yahya Sepehr Shakib
Sales: Persia Film Distribution
Venue: Fajr Film Festival's Iranian Film Market
In Persian
85 minutes

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