The Salesman (Forushande)
Ajyal Competition
Asghar Farhadi / Feature Narrative / Iran, France / 2016 / 125 min / DCP2K
In Persian / Arabic, English subtitles
Interests: Drama
MENA Premiere
Synopsis
When their apartment building suddenly threatens to collapse, Emad and Rana need to find somewhere to stay, so they move into a shabby nearby apartment owned by an acquaintance. They are irritated to discover one of the apartment’s rooms is locked – and crammed with the previous tenant’s belongings. This uncomfortable displacement and disruption of personal space is soon punctuated by a violent and horribly personal invasion of their home, setting the tone for contemporary Iranian master Asghar Farhadi’s unsettling look at the impact of social pressures, idle gossip and suspicion.
Although they try to erase what has happened, the terrible events repeatedly invade the couple’s consciousness and Emad embarks on a vengeful quest to find the perpetrator. Meanwhile, the pair are playing the lead roles in a stage production of Arthur Miller’s masterpiece ‘Death of a Salesman’, and the deterioration of relationships in the play eerily echoes the breakdown of understanding among the characters in the film.
A taut script, precise direction and strikingly naturalistic acting come together to create an intimate drama that plays out like a thriller, while tight camerawork emphasises tension and claustrophobia. With ‘The Salesman’, Farhadi delivers a brilliant, complex story of two people suddenly at odds in a space contaminated by uncertainty and mistrust.
About the Directors
Asghar Farhadi was born in 1972 in Isfahan. He graduated with a Master’s Degree in Film Direction from Tehran University in 1998. His directorial debut came in 2003 with ‘Dancing in the Dust’ and was followed by ‘Beautiful City’ (2004), ‘Fireworks Wednesday’ (2006) and ‘About Elly’, which took the Silver Bear for Best Director at the Berlinale in 2009. ‘A Separation’ (2011), his fifth feature, won the Golden Bear for Best Film as well as two Silver Bears at the Berlinale, as well as a huge number of awards around the world. Since then, he has directed the widely acclaimed and multi-award winning ‘The Past’ (2013) and ‘The Salesman’.
Credits
- Director
- Asghar Farhadi
- Screenwriter
- Asghar Farhadi
- Producer
- Asghar Farhadi, Alexandre Mallet-Guy
- Editor
- Hayedeh Safiyari
- Composer
- Sattar Oraki
- Music
- Sattar Oraki
- Cinematographer
- Hossein Jafarian
- Production Company
- Memento Films, Asghar Farhadi Production
- Distributor
- Falcon Films
- Cast
- Shahab Hosseini, Taraneh Alidoosti, Babak Karimi, Farid Sajjadi Hosseini, Mina Sadati