This is a review of “A Hero” was first published after the film’s July 2021 premiere at the Cannes Film Festival.
For the second time, an Oscar winner “A Separation” “The Salesman,”For his latest film, Asghar Farhadi, an Iranian director, could be a potential contender. “A Hero,”This premiered last July at the Cannes competition.
Indeed, the film’s plot and premise turning on that filmic staple of a bag of treasure — in this case, 17 gold coins found in a handbag at a bus stop in the city of Shiraz.
The coins come into the possession of a man, Rahim Soltani (Amir Jadidi), who is out on a few days release from debtor’s prison. He views the money as a way to pay off his debts and get out of prison.
However, when the pair excitedly visit a gold dealer, they find the treasure isn’t as valuable as they’d hoped. Rahim devises a new plan. He will post notices in the neighborhood asking for help and hoping to get some sort of reward.
The ex-prisoner’s selfless act is soon the talk of the neighborhood. He’s on the TV and in the newspapers and — apparently — on social media, although rather strangely Farhadi rarely shows us any mobile phones or computers, even if Rahim’s poor, stammering son Saivash is constantly on a tablet.
The simple plan quickly becomes complicated. Fissures appear in the rock face of the story, like the ancient ruins of Persepolis which feature so dramatically in the film’s opening shots. Who is the real owner of the bag? Who claims the bag? Why was the prison administration so quick to praise their star inmate after he had a successful rehabilitation? Why won’t Rahim’s creditor, the grumpy Bahram, give a guy a break?
As Rahim gets deeper into his own schemes, our throats tighten. As played by Jadidi, he looks like an innocent man with an optimistic smile, yet he’s also simmering beneath with a desperation and an eye for deception. It’s not even clear if he deserves our sympathy at all. A little exaggeration goes a long way here and suddenly we are seeking truth and moral rectitude in a society that seems very quick to defend its own honor and a town holding out for a hero, a role which frankly Rahim isn’t up to.
The situation gets worse when a parole officer who may find Rahim work after prison is assigned to verify the story. All the characters end up tying themselves in knots of dilemma — even the well-intentioned charity commissioners who’ve grabbed for the publicity and now risk tarnishing their images.
“A Hero” may well be the most likely winner to play in this year’s selection thus far in Cannes. The film is beautifully shot, written with elegance, with a thriller-like pace. “A Hero”This bow should do very well in the rest of the world.
Farhadi has a far more solid foundation here than with his Cannes entry, Spanish-set 2018, family feud drama “Everybody Knows.”There are clear echoes of his greatest work, especially as “A Hero”The secular realm remains. It depicts households, bickering families having delicious-looking spreads, busy offices, Saivash’s speech therapy school (where it turns out Rahim’s girlfriend also works as a teacher) and a bustling indoor bazaar that becomes the location for a great scuffle scene.
The film leaves many of its questions dangling — a second viewing might clear up some of them, such as what’s happened to Rahim’s first wife and where these corrupting coins really came from in the first place, and indeed, where they’ve now gone. That seems to be the point. You might think the put-upon little Saivash could hold the key, unable to utter the answer in a world of one person’s word against another’s.
But Farhadi doesn’t give things away that easily, and nor does the enigmatic face of his protagonist.
“A Hero”Friday release in limited theatrical release
Check out ’s digital Cannes magazine issue here. You can find all of ’s Cannes coverage here.
