Review of A Separation (2011) by Maxwell S — 09 Nov 2012

This is a film is one of those films that are "controlled messes", which I call them (and others probably do too). It is a constant and intensely emotional downward spiral, kind of like "Magnolia" (1999), though "Magnolia" shows at least one glimpse of hope. Anyway, this film, in it's bare concept, is about the obscurities of normal life through the process of divorce, and where that leads us. Each character sort of represents a kind of person. The main character, Nader, is bold, argumentative, and reserved in his sense of humanity. The daughter represents the innocent, to which where most of the answers lie. Nader's wife is the kind of person who just wants everything to be ok, but can only take so much troubles. She is the most motherly, especially compared to Razieh, who takes life only seriously in the sense of religion. To me, she is very cold and probably the emphasis on why I relate to Nader oh so much. Though she can't entirely speak to herself, she isn't expressed as a selfless and defenseless being like other cliched films. However, the most humane character of them all, is the grandfather. His oblivious to his problems, the problems he caused, or even humanity itself. The film focuses so thoroughly on the problems within the film, and yet the grandfather is still placed within the film. But, when he is present in the scene, he doesn't feel out of place, I feel is the direct representation of life being larger and greater than everything the film is expressing. It was a brilliant move to have him in the film. The messages of the film can be easily said, but you won't purely understand them without watching the film first.

The greatest film of 2011.