31st Hall of Fame
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A Hero
Soltani has been released from prison on a temporary basis to pay a debt, the reason for his imprisonment to begin with, to his brother in law. His hood lies in paying off part, if not all, of his debt through a bag of coins that has been found by his patient and loyal girlfriend. He hopes it is at least enough to secure his release.
It doesn’t quite work out that well.
Farhadi weaves a tale that takes some interesting turns along the way as we get a look at Iranian life and culture, presenting its supposed hero as a flawed man desperate to win back his freedom. The coins turn out to have depreciated in value by the time he has has them inspected, and learns it won’t be enough to secure his release.
He returns them, and is hailed a Hero of sorts. He’s done a good deed in the peoples eyes and deserves to be released for such actions. A charity is set up to help a quote the funds. His debtor is suspicious and starts to look into it more closely.
The story is more or less not as important as the themes Soltani is clearly not some sort of Hero. That’s not to say he’s a bad guy, really, but complicates things further by having his girlfriend (who originally found the bag of coins) posing as the owner when doubt spreads. He lets his anger get the better of him, and leads to a confrontation that was better off being avoided.
It’s wonderfullly acted, and the father finally has a moment of realization where he spares his son of being exploited. It is his only real selfless act, and ironically seals his fate.
Much like Gone Baby Gone, (although on a much lesser level), it deals with morals. I’ve seen it compared to The Bicycle Thieves (er, maybe? I can see some resemblances but it’s a slight stretch) in similar themes, but I think it’s an unfair comparison.
It’s a great pick, however, and a fun revisit.
Soltani has been released from prison on a temporary basis to pay a debt, the reason for his imprisonment to begin with, to his brother in law. His hood lies in paying off part, if not all, of his debt through a bag of coins that has been found by his patient and loyal girlfriend. He hopes it is at least enough to secure his release.
It doesn’t quite work out that well.
Farhadi weaves a tale that takes some interesting turns along the way as we get a look at Iranian life and culture, presenting its supposed hero as a flawed man desperate to win back his freedom. The coins turn out to have depreciated in value by the time he has has them inspected, and learns it won’t be enough to secure his release.
He returns them, and is hailed a Hero of sorts. He’s done a good deed in the peoples eyes and deserves to be released for such actions. A charity is set up to help a quote the funds. His debtor is suspicious and starts to look into it more closely.
The story is more or less not as important as the themes Soltani is clearly not some sort of Hero. That’s not to say he’s a bad guy, really, but complicates things further by having his girlfriend (who originally found the bag of coins) posing as the owner when doubt spreads. He lets his anger get the better of him, and leads to a confrontation that was better off being avoided.
It’s wonderfullly acted, and the father finally has a moment of realization where he spares his son of being exploited. It is his only real selfless act, and ironically seals his fate.
Much like Gone Baby Gone, (although on a much lesser level), it deals with morals. I’ve seen it compared to The Bicycle Thieves (er, maybe? I can see some resemblances but it’s a slight stretch) in similar themes, but I think it’s an unfair comparison.
It’s a great pick, however, and a fun revisit.
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We are all done folks! I'll probably do the unveil tomorrow night at the latest. I still have to count everything up so even I don't know the results right now.
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Approximate results will be 4 PM central time.
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I'm here!
Really Herod's Law is last I figured it would be Sons of the Desert. I appreciated both as noms, but didn't love either.
Really Herod's Law is last I figured it would be Sons of the Desert. I appreciated both as noms, but didn't love either.
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Ah, there it is! I had Sons of the Desert at #6. Bet I was one of the highest voters for it.
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Herod's Law was 9 for me. Only one that I didn't really like. Sons of the Desert was my 5 I truly did like it quite a bit.
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Herod's Law was 9 for me. Only one that I didn't really like. Sons of the Desert was my 5 I truly did like it quite a bit.
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I did like Herod’s Law but this was a tough hall.
Sons Of The Desert was my 9. Just not my kind of humor.
Sons Of The Desert was my 9. Just not my kind of humor.
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The Duellist was a cool nom too, never seen it before. Has to be Siddon's nom. It was my #5
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