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IRAN

Bemani- Dariush Mehrjui
"Gorgeously shot and brutally honest-this is the paradox-Bemani is a stunningly tragic portrait of the desperation of isolated young women. Three stories set in a town on
the Iraqi border build to a grim fairy tale. A weaver meets a handsome border guard and makes him a rug; they are seen together, and soon she is no more. A woman secretly studying medicine, is found out by her father and imprisoned in his basement. Bemani, daughter of a poor tenant, is given to her elderly landlord in marriage. She literally can't wait till he dies. The rate of attempted suicides among women and girls is stretching the local hospital's resources. In this rural life, all that should be beautiful is oppressive: the rich colors of yarns are the color of blood; beautifully prepared food tastes of a slave's hand; nature's dry expanses and familiar brooks mean there is nowhere to hide. A goat has a better life than a woman, until both have served their purpose."-Judy Bloch, Pacific Film Archive. (95 mins.) Print courtesy of Farabi Cinema Foundation.
Selected Filmography: The Postman (70), Cycle (78), Leila (96), The Pear Tree (98), Tales of An Island (00).
Showtimes: 2/21, 9pm WH and 2/23, 4:30pm BW.

Deserted Station- Alireza Raisian
Skillfully directed and superbly cast, The Deserted Station is Raisian's second movie based on the work of Abbas Kiarostami. Like all Kiarostami road tales, it depicts binary oppositions in a complex culture: modern/traditional, urban/rural, religious/secular and personal/political. Raisian's exquisite visuals beautifully complement this story of a photographer-husband and his schoolteacher wife who, having had two stillborn children, drive to the holy city of Mashad to pray for the healthy birth of their third child. En route, the car breaks down and they become stranded in a desert village. The villages' mechanic, Feizollah (played by Iran's greatest comedic actor, Mehran Rajabi), is also its teacher and barber; in fact, he is the villages' sole adult male and its self-appointed guardian. When the husband accompanies Feizollah to another town to get a part for the car, the wife takes over Feizollah's class and is utterly transformed by her experiences in this isolated world-one filled with the children she so desperately has wanted to have. (93 mins.) Print courtesy of Farabi Cinema Foundation.
Filmography: The Journey (94), Reghaneh (95).
Showtimes: 2/25, 6:30pm and 2/26, 8:30pm BW.

PHOTO- DESERTED STATION