Berlinale (Competition): Golden Bear, Best Actor, Best Actress, Prize of the Ecumenical Jury


What a night for Asghar Farhadi's Nader and Simin, a Separation. Not only has the International Jury of this year's Berlinale, presided over by Isabella Rossellini, awarded the film the Golden Bear, but, in a most unusual move, the jury's also decided to give the Silver Bear for Best Actor and Silver Bear for Best Actress to the male and femaie ensembles, respectively.

Actress Sarina Farhadi (below) thanked all those in Iran who've stood in hours for tickets to see the film — which, we might as well go ahead and mention, has also picked up the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury for best film in the Competition. -- David Hudson 

A Separation (2011)



Synopsis

Simin wants to leave Iran with her husband Nader and daughter Termeh. She has already made all the necessary arrangements. Nader, however, is having second thoughts. He is worried about leaving behind his father, who is suffering from Alzheimer’s. For this reason he decides to call off the trip altogether.

As a result of Nader’s decision, Simin decides to sue for divorce at the family court. When her request is rejected, however, she refuses to live with Nader, moving instead into her parents’ home. Termeh decides to stay with her father, hoping that her mother will soon come back to live with them.

Nader finds it difficult to cope with the new situation – not least because it turns out to be so time-consuming. And so he hires a young woman named Razieh to look after his father. This young woman is pregnant and has accepted the job without her husband’s knowledge.

One day, Nader arrives home to find that not only has his father been left alone, he has also been tied to a table! When Razieh returns, a blazing row ensues, the tragic consequences of which not only shatter Nader’s life, but also the image his daughter Termeh has of her father. -- Berlinale

Cast: Leila Hatami, Peyman Moadi, Shahab Hosseini, Sareh Bayat, Sarina Farhadi, Babak Karimi, Ali-Asghar Shahbazi, Shirin Yazdanbakhsh, Kimia Hosseini, Merila Zarei

Cinematography by: Mahmoud Kalari



Berlinale (Competition): Golden Bear, Best Actor, Best Actress, Prize of the Ecumenical Jury, Transilvania (Supernova), Melbourne (International Panorama), Karlovy Vary (Horizons), San Sebastián (Zabaltegi-Pearls), Helsinki (Closing Night), Toronto (Contemporary World Cinema), New York, Vancouver (Cinema of Our Time), Telluride, Athens (Closing Night), Abu Dhabi (Narrative Feature Competition)