Michael's Movie Grade: A+
Review: Complex, thought provoking and all together brilliant work of cinematic art.
Asghar Farhadi is considered one of the best Iranian film makers of our time and from this film alone it is not hard to see why. Everything in this film is handled beautifully. Not giving anything away but there is an important event that is never shown, and it is never fully reveled what happened. After the movie was over other people in the theater were all discussing what happened in this scene, and they all saw the film differently based on what they felt had happened. This is a sign of great art and just the power of what film can in fact do. Farhadi knows just what to show us and just what to hide from us to make us fascinated with the movie, and thinking deeply about it, but not to do it too much to alienate the audience.
The characters are fascinating. They often act questionably, but still in a way we understand why they did what they did. The characters aren't always likable, but they are always fascinating. They constantly surprise us with what they do, but what they do always makes sense and seems fully in character. It doesn't hurt that everyone in the cast does a fantastic job.
This film also fully tackles such subjects as sexism, loyalty, and mankind's sense of purpose. However none of this is ever clearly stated in the film. The film never stops to preach to you, or has scenes that feel like they are only there to covey the points the film wants to make. Instead this all naturally comes from the story and characters, and this is done without ever sacrificing the power of what the film has to say. In fact it is stated more powerfully here than it ever could be with words.
Despite the fact that this is not always the happiest of movies, that does not mean it doesn't have humorous moments. Scenes involving having a kid over for dinner, or the teacher sleeping in his class are really funny. While they do lighten up the mood and make us laugh they never feel out of place in the story that is being told. They not only fit in perfectly, but they also help heighten the drama and move the story forward.
This movie is simply incredible and an amazing experience that you will probably never forget, as I know I will never forget this movie, and the effect it had on me.
-Michael J. Ruhland
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