A group of middle-class friends travel from Tehran to spend the weekend at the seaside. Sepideh (Golshifteh Farahani) invites Elly (Taraneh Alidoosti), who is the young teacher of her little daughter, to travel with the three families in order to introduce her to their recently divorced friend Ahmad (Shahab Hosseini) that lives in Germany. Ahmad will spend a few days in Iran and asked the cooperative Sepideh if she can find a fiancée for him. On the next morning, two women go shopping in the town and the Elly tells that she will return to Tehran since her mother has been recently submitted to a heart surgery, but Sepideh asks her to stay and hides her luggage. The children are playing in the sea and one mother asks Elly to watch them. Out of the blue, Sepideh's daughter calls the men that are playing volleyball to rescue one of the children from the water. They rescue the little boy and they seek out Elly, questioning whether she has drowned or returned to Tehran. What has happened to Elly?
"Darbareye Elly" is a spectacular Iranian film, awarded with eleven wins including the Silver Berlin Bear in the category Best Director and with six nominations. The realistic story is impressive, giving the sensation of a documentary through a handy camera. The heartbreaking story makes sense in the values of the Iranian society, where adultery might be punished with death sentence through stoning. The discussion about the "status quo" of Elly, who can not call off her commitment with her fiancé, is a brilliant panel of the thoughts and judgment of their society. I am a fan of Iranian cinema, but "Darbareye Elly" has overcome all my best expectations and is among the best Iranian films I have had the chance to see and I will certainly recommend it to my cinephile friends. My vote is nine.
Title (Brazil): "À Procura de Elly" ("Seeking out Elly")
"Darbareye Elly" is a spectacular Iranian film, awarded with eleven wins including the Silver Berlin Bear in the category Best Director and with six nominations. The realistic story is impressive, giving the sensation of a documentary through a handy camera. The heartbreaking story makes sense in the values of the Iranian society, where adultery might be punished with death sentence through stoning. The discussion about the "status quo" of Elly, who can not call off her commitment with her fiancé, is a brilliant panel of the thoughts and judgment of their society. I am a fan of Iranian cinema, but "Darbareye Elly" has overcome all my best expectations and is among the best Iranian films I have had the chance to see and I will certainly recommend it to my cinephile friends. My vote is nine.
Title (Brazil): "À Procura de Elly" ("Seeking out Elly")