Review of A Separation (2011) by Oz S — 16 Mar 2012

I'm taking the (probably unpopular) stand that "A Separation" is getting cut a lot of slack for coming from a country that lacks a highly developed film industry and the bar has been lowered. I found little compelling or enjoyable about watching these unsympathetic characters squabble and muddle their way through their troubles. The daughter may be left as the moral center but her expressionless acting gives the audience little to work with in terms of empathy.

Critics have been repeating endless political correctness about how "this foreign film gives us characters who don't feel so foreign after all" but that has little to do with good filmmaking and more about perceptions of the limitations of the audience. The political side of me was thrilled to hear the producer's fantastic appeal at the Academy Awards but I suspect this film didn't win on its merits alone.