Massoud Bakhshi | Iran, France | 2012 | 90’ | In Farsi | English subtitles
Iranian cinema regularly comes to the fore; negatively, for example with the prosecution of director Jafar Pahani, but also positively, as with Ashgar Farhadi’s Oscar winning A Separation, which was last year’s World Cinema Amsterdam opening film. A respectable family, Massoud Bakhshi's first feature film, definitely ranks in the positive news category.
In this at times thriller-like film Bakhshi deftly depicts the Iran of the past 30 years. A picture of a rotten society emerges, where arbitrariness, crime and corruption run rampant.
After 22 years of living abroad, college professor Arash has returned to Iran. His ill father, from whom he has become completely estranged, wants to leave him a fortune, money from a rather shady source. Arash wants nothing to do with it, but doesn’t seem to have a choice when the corrupt taxi driver Hamed, his half-brother’s son, forces him to settle his father’s affairs, which appear to go back to the early days of the revolution of 1979.
Due to the intelligent script, the surprising mix of fact and fiction and the excellent acting this feature film debut was selected for the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs section at the 2012 Cannes film festival. This film is this year's closing film and is shown prior to the Amsterdam World Cinema Jury Award ceremony.
Screenings:
Location: Rialto
SAT 18 AUG - 20:00 | 
Location: De Balie
Director is present during the screenings and available for Q&A.
