I sunk in my seat during the last shot, you know a masterpiece when you experience it!
I am no critic, just a normal movie buff with an appreciation for thought-provoking storylines.
Having followed him since 'A Separation', Asghar Farhadi has time and again left me thinking deeper about the meaning of life. We can agree that he has defined his style through layering in nuances within seemingly simple plots, but every movie is as unpredictable as the previous.
Note: I personally don't want him to try out radically different ideas, just how you wouldn't expect an abstract painting from Monet, and 'A Hero' is a unique Farhadi-esque masterpiece, which I saw pre-release at a boutique New York theatre.
The movie starts out with an Iranian prisoner (Jadidi) starting on parole leave, during which they end up contributing to a seemingly noble deed. Without mentioning spoilers, this act, coupled with a bit of whitewashing, brings the prisoner a lot of goodwill and fame. What results is a complex game of limelight stretching and jealousy, which upends the prisoner's life.
What I love about the plot is that it perfectly captures the imperfections of humans (which I categorize across pride, greed, envy, wrath), and is a refreshing slap in my face which is so attuned to "happy endings" and the concept of an "ideal human society". A good example being the exploitation of the protagonist's verbally-challenged son by those seeking to save themselves through sympathy.
However, with that being said, 'A Hero' really elicited some of my feelings deep within during the last shot, which really highlighted that all of us really only desire the same thing at the end, no matter your age, religion, nationality, wealth, etc.
While Farhadi plots do a great job standing on their own, Jadidi did a far better job than prior protagonists towards adding emotions to the storyline, leaving me angry, perplexed, frustrated, sad and happy throughout this emotional rollercoaster.
It is unfortunate that folks are comparing 'A Hero' to prior movies and panning the ratings, which does disservice to artists (as ridiculous as choosing the 'better' between the Taj Mahal and the Pyramids of Giza.
Instead, I give it a 10/10 because a) It's a movie like none other b) It brings out raw human nature that is often disguised c) It leaves you thinking about your true desires in life.
Having followed him since 'A Separation', Asghar Farhadi has time and again left me thinking deeper about the meaning of life. We can agree that he has defined his style through layering in nuances within seemingly simple plots, but every movie is as unpredictable as the previous.
Note: I personally don't want him to try out radically different ideas, just how you wouldn't expect an abstract painting from Monet, and 'A Hero' is a unique Farhadi-esque masterpiece, which I saw pre-release at a boutique New York theatre.
The movie starts out with an Iranian prisoner (Jadidi) starting on parole leave, during which they end up contributing to a seemingly noble deed. Without mentioning spoilers, this act, coupled with a bit of whitewashing, brings the prisoner a lot of goodwill and fame. What results is a complex game of limelight stretching and jealousy, which upends the prisoner's life.
What I love about the plot is that it perfectly captures the imperfections of humans (which I categorize across pride, greed, envy, wrath), and is a refreshing slap in my face which is so attuned to "happy endings" and the concept of an "ideal human society". A good example being the exploitation of the protagonist's verbally-challenged son by those seeking to save themselves through sympathy.
However, with that being said, 'A Hero' really elicited some of my feelings deep within during the last shot, which really highlighted that all of us really only desire the same thing at the end, no matter your age, religion, nationality, wealth, etc.
While Farhadi plots do a great job standing on their own, Jadidi did a far better job than prior protagonists towards adding emotions to the storyline, leaving me angry, perplexed, frustrated, sad and happy throughout this emotional rollercoaster.
It is unfortunate that folks are comparing 'A Hero' to prior movies and panning the ratings, which does disservice to artists (as ridiculous as choosing the 'better' between the Taj Mahal and the Pyramids of Giza.
Instead, I give it a 10/10 because a) It's a movie like none other b) It brings out raw human nature that is often disguised c) It leaves you thinking about your true desires in life.
- TraditionalManager
- Nov 20, 2021