A Separation

one of the toughest films i’ve seen to date. i don’t think there has been a film that touched me as much as this one. there were many moments of frustration that i’ve felt throughout the film, almost wishing that there would be a happy ending, but the clear truth is that not all films need that happy ending, and when a film is as raw and transparent as this one, one can embrace its ending. we see throughout the film how one little lie/accusation can cause an entire domino effect. you can never stay truly mad at any of the characters, and when you live in the western world, where religion isn’t as dominant, you almost forget that this lifestyle (swearing to the quran, the strictness of divorce) is the norm in these countries. so many frames had such an impact, from the family driving back with the empty hole through simin to somayeh staring up with such an upset look (immediately reminded of sansa’s stare to joffrey from GoT), but that final shot, of nader and simin finally separated, was my favorite of all. this film is a prime example that one could have all the technical experience and money in the world to create a film, but without a touching story, that film means almost nothing. there’s so much i would love to point out, but then this review would never end.