Even without my prior knowledge from the film description, the urgency of the situation is clear from the first minute. Maryam (Sadaf Asgari) is brought handcuffed to the TV studio, is made ready for the shoot and has to wait. Wait for a live broadcast that will decide over her life. Because only the daughter of her late husband has the ability to forgive her and thus save her from the execution she was sentenced to for the apparent murder of her husband.
Massoud Bakhshis film Yalda, la nuit du pardon tells the story of a young woman who has lost everything and whose life is now used to entertain 30 million people on television. This drama is inspired by a real TV show that was broadcasted in Iran for 12 years and has now fortunately been discontinued.
It is difficult to look at. While watching Maryam nervously waiting, one can't help but get nervous as well. Without hesitation one wants to believe in her innocence and is on her side, suffers along with her emotional outbursts and is painfully aware that for the likeable protagonist it's a matter of life and death. As a counterpart to this, the very calm and bitter-looking Mona (Behnaz Jafari), who as Maryam's antagonist also becomes the viewer's opponent.
The audience of the TV show only learns step by step what happened in the night of the crime and how the situation develops. At the beginning there is a chaotic pile of information and impressions that make a rough puzzle, but only in the course of the story do we get the necessary puzzle pieces to be able to recognize a clear picture.
There are several turning points, but even though the plot all of a sudden seems to go into another direction, you never know in which direction it went before, let alone afterwards. For 90 minutes there is no breathing space. The turning points sharpen the story rather than creating relief and the pressing feeling on my heart gets heavier with every minute.
Yalda, la nuit du pardon encourages us to think about what real forgiveness means. This film sheds light on the dark sides of television and allows us to empathize with those involved in front of the camera as human beings, not as objects of entertainment. It draws attention to the situation of women and the continuing death penalty in Iran. An extremely worthwhile film.
Massoud Bakhshis film Yalda, la nuit du pardon tells the story of a young woman who has lost everything and whose life is now used to entertain 30 million people on television. This drama is inspired by a real TV show that was broadcasted in Iran for 12 years and has now fortunately been discontinued.
It is difficult to look at. While watching Maryam nervously waiting, one can't help but get nervous as well. Without hesitation one wants to believe in her innocence and is on her side, suffers along with her emotional outbursts and is painfully aware that for the likeable protagonist it's a matter of life and death. As a counterpart to this, the very calm and bitter-looking Mona (Behnaz Jafari), who as Maryam's antagonist also becomes the viewer's opponent.
The audience of the TV show only learns step by step what happened in the night of the crime and how the situation develops. At the beginning there is a chaotic pile of information and impressions that make a rough puzzle, but only in the course of the story do we get the necessary puzzle pieces to be able to recognize a clear picture.
There are several turning points, but even though the plot all of a sudden seems to go into another direction, you never know in which direction it went before, let alone afterwards. For 90 minutes there is no breathing space. The turning points sharpen the story rather than creating relief and the pressing feeling on my heart gets heavier with every minute.
Yalda, la nuit du pardon encourages us to think about what real forgiveness means. This film sheds light on the dark sides of television and allows us to empathize with those involved in front of the camera as human beings, not as objects of entertainment. It draws attention to the situation of women and the continuing death penalty in Iran. An extremely worthwhile film.
Comments
Post a Comment