Beautiful City by Asghar Farhadi (Iran, 2004, 100 min, 35 mm) New York Premiere

Synopsis:

A lonely abused woman warily lets a paroled convict into her life when he promises to help get her brother’s death sentence commuted. Director Farhadi (Dancing in the Dust) presents one of the more frank and realistic portrayals of young love in contemporary Iranian cinema in counterpoint to the grim quest of a murder victim’s father for eye-for-an-eye justice. The award-winning star of I am Taraneh, 15, shines in a nuanced performance as the sister trapped in a marriage of convenience to a disreputable middle-aged peddler but increasingly drawn to the ex-con who is her brother’s best friend. In Persian with English subtitles. Description courtesy of the Gene Siskel Film Center.

Proceded by Kismet.

Post-screening panel discussion with Laleh Khorramian (Artist, NYC) and Melissa Hibbard (ArteEast)

Filmmaker's Bio:

Asghar Farhadi (b. 1972) completed a BA in Theater at Tehran University and an MA from Tarbiat Modarres. He made several 8mm and 16mm for Iranian Young Cinema Society. He then went on to write plays and screenplays for Iranian television and directed many popular TV series, including A Tale of a City. Farhadi’s first feature film, Dancing in the Dust (2003), received many prizes at Fajr Film Festival and was screened internationally to much acclaim. Beautiful City is his second feature film.

Festivals and Awards:

• Film Festival of India, Golden Peacock for best Asian movie, 2004
• Warsaw Film Festival, Grand Prix, 2004
• Fajr Film Festival, 2004
• Montreal World Film Festival, 2004
• Sao Paulo Film Festival, 2004
• Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, 2004
• Umea Int'l Film Festival, Sweden, 2004
• Gene Siskel Film Center, Chicago, 2004
• Bangkok Film Festival, 2005

Print Source Information:

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