A SEPARATION (Iran, 2011) by director Asghar Farhadi

Nominated for an Oscar for ‘Best Foreign Language Film’, A SEPARATION has been stunning audiences since its open at the 2011 Berlinale last February. Most recently, it screened at the 23rd Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF 2012).

Bank employee Nader (played by Peyman Moadi) wants to stay in Iran but his wife Simin (Leila Hatami) wants to leave. A traditionalist stuck in the past and unable to leave his beloved father and fatherland, Nader wants to stay and take care of his sickly old father. His wife Simin, on the other hand, is thinking forward and wants to take their teenaged daughter to another country for a better life, so much so that she sues her husband for divorce as a result of their unresolved conflict. Simin is refused the divorce by the Iran justice and opts to separate from Nader to live with her mother. During their separation Nader hires Razieh, a devout young woman with a four year-old daughter, to take care of his ailing father. Razieh works hard (even while pregnant) and is an honest trustworthy person, but one day a terrible accident occurs that results in Razieh accusing Nader of manslaughter and Nader accusing Razieh of robbery.

The story takes place in contemporary Iran, a world straddling between tenacious traditionalism and inevitable change with the times. A husband and wife stand on opposite sides of this growing abyss between the old and the new and their own irreconcilable differences, leaving their teenaged daughter caught in the middle. What will they do? Is there a resolution on either side or somewhere in the middle? Or will the impending change come from the new generation that will efface all sides and create a synthesis between the two?

A SEPARATION has won a number of awards at international film festivals, including: Golden Berlin Bear International Jury, Silver Berlin Bear Best Actress, Silver Berlin Bear Best Actor and most recently won the Golden Globe award for Best Foreign Film.

written by Vanessa McMahon, January 19, 2012