A job interview, a summons to the police station, a shopping trip… all these segments have one thing in common: they show the worst absurdities caused by the deprivation of freedom in Iran. A father who cannot call his son what he wants, a woman accused of not wearing her veil, a filmmaker censored by the government, etc. In addition, each segment follows a character who becomes older and older, a newborn, a child, a high school girl, a young adult, and so on until an old man at death’s door. This sequence cleverly symbolizes that an Iranian is deprived of his freedoms throughout his life, and that he can never live fully.

This is an extremely dark and sad theme, and the two filmmakers illustrate it with a form rarely seen in cinema. During each of the sequence shots, the discussion is shown only from the point of view of the character, and the interlocutor is never visible. The filmmakers thus show the coldness and lack of empathy of Iranian society, whose worst is shown here. And the interlocutor’s words are each time of a raging violence. It is not difficult to imagine the Iranian people revolting when such scenes of humiliation are part of everyday life. Moreover, all these little stories are inspired by real testimonies, as Ali Asgari and Alireza Khatami said before the screening in Cannes. A film not to be missed, as it is unique in its kind.