February 19 - 20: A Separation

    (Iran, 2011. 123 mins. Subtitled)

    A Film by Asghar Farhadi

Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2Sswx_vrWk

“A subtle and gripping examination of Iran’s social divide, religious traditions and justice program, Asghar Farhadi’s portrayal of the break-up of a marriage has won virtually universal praise from critics at the annual cinema showcase.” – David Lawson, phbeta.com

 Nanaimo, BC – The third-to-last film in the 2011-12 season of Fringe Flicks has received international acclaim, nominated for 2 Oscars with another 43 wins & 18 nominations at film festivals around the world. The Separation from  Iranian director Asghar Farhadi won a Golden Globe award for Best Foreign Film, the coveted Golden Bear at Berlin International Film Festival, and is an official Academy Awards entry for Best Foreign Language film.

Transcending cultural and religious barriers to present a fascinating portrait of contemporary Iran, A Separation is Asghar Farhadi’s Divorce, Persian Style. In any film where a character has to call a religious hotline to ask if her professional duties are consistent with her beliefs, you know the devil is in the details. And so it is that Farhadi delivers his best work to date, a maze of narrative intrigue and complex emotion in which everyone is both innocent and guilty, depending on where you’re standing.

Nader (Peyman Moaadi) and Simin (Leila Hatami) are well-behaved middle-class Iranian citizens. They fight quietly, hold decent jobs and prefer to resolve their domestic differences in court. But they only comport themselves with such courtesy because they might be a little too civilized to let their real feelings show. After Nader refuses to emigrate from Iran to provide a brighter future for their daughter, Simin files for divorce. With Simin now living with her mother, Nader is forced to hire Razieh (Sareh Bayat) a deeply religious and secretly pregnant young woman, to look after his father during the day. But once Razieh’s condition starts getting in the way of her job, Nader allows the worst aspects of his repressed nature to emerge — resulting in a Razieh’s most uncivilized termination and even more courtroom headaches. As Nader’s entire family is drawn into an unprecedented feud, Farhadi continues his devilishly clever turning of narrative tables, selectively revealing new details and forcing the viewer to continuously reassess each character.

Asghar Farhadi was born in Isfahan, Iran. He received a master’s degree in film direction from Tehran University. His films are Dancing in the Dust (03), Beautiful City (04), Fireworks Wednesday (06), About Elly (09) and A Separation (11).

Cast: Leila Hatami, Peyman Moaadi, Shahab Hosseini, Sareh Bayat, Sarina Farhadi

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