one of the most heartbreaking & breathtaking movies i ve ever seen... dont miss this one!
Set in Ghobadi's native Kurdistan, close to the Turkey-Iran border. Soran is a 13yo boy who orders other children around as he installs an antenna for villagers keen to hear of Saddam's fall. Eventually, he falls for Agrin but is disturbed by her brother Henkov, who was left armless after he stepped on a landmine and who can now seemingly predict the future.
Incredible performances from a cast mainly comprised of children and teens. Director/writer Bahman Ghobadi blends day-to-day experiences common to people everywhere (falling in love, being asked to do something you don't really know how to do, etc.), with some of the realities of life in a Kurdish village in Iraq before the (most recent) war, to create an incredibly moving film. It is at once specific to its time and place, and universal. There is horror and humour, honour and compassion.
It's beautifully filmed, too, but the power comes totally out of the stories and the kids, who are in effect playing themselves.
HEARTBREAKING.... so is war...