Joonam finds the charm inherent in a friction-filled family reunion, but its search for identity in the Iranian diaspora is left wanting. JacobOller's Sundance2023 review:
Last year, I read an interview with a French filmmaker who started something called the Grandmas Project. The idea was that, to preserve our different cultural heritages and record the myriad lived experiences of our elders, people all over the world should shoot short films about their grandmothers. Think less masterful versions of Martin Scorsese’s, where charming domesticity runs headlong into the hardships of previous generations.
The shadow of Urich’s uncertain Persian-American identity gives the doc its depth, as she seeks to learn enough Farsi to effectively communicate with her grandmother, while simultaneously being pushed back by the older generations who experienced the repression of Iran firsthand. At its best, it captures a complex blend of wistfulness and pride that will resonate with many immigrant families while striking a specific tone of playful prickliness all its own.
Urich’s techniques to that end are a grab bag. There’s the cute archival home video shot by Mitra, for her family back in Iran, when Urich was a baby. There’s Behjat’s reminiscing, mostly in Farsi with subtitles, which sometimes cut to darkness and allow her words to burn into the screen.
When the women are all together and Urich’s camera is rolling, you get delightful and familiar candid conversations, sometimes around the logistics of shooting the documentary itself and sometimes just singing in the car…either of which can quickly turn into an argument. And isn’t that always the way it goes when visiting family? Reuniting and falling back into the same old patterns? You start bickering like you’d just left off the day before, even if it’s been months.
Documentaries, far more than fiction films , are shaped as they go along. Often, you see a premise morph mid-movie as a production shifts to accommodate a new obstacle or pursue a more interesting idea. Sometimes, that can make for vital, thrilling movies where you don’t knowyou’ll end up, and you’re grateful for the filmmaker for taking you along this wild ride.
Argentina Últimas Noticias, Argentina Titulares
Similar News:También puedes leer noticias similares a ésta que hemos recopilado de otras fuentes de noticias.
Michigan family sentenced to life in prison for 2020 shooting of Family Dollar security guardThree members of a Michigan family have been sentenced to life in prison after being convicted in the murder of a Flint Family Dollar security guard in May 2020.
Leer más »
Iranian Labor Unions Have Led Powerful Solidarity Strikes Amid the UprisingAs more than 18,000 people have been arrested and over 500 killed by the police and the army in the nationwide protests in Iran, independent unions have held solidarity strikes to back the uprising.
Leer más »
‘Shayda’ Review: An Iranian-Australian Filmmaker’s Affecting Drama of Maternal StrengthCate Blanchett is one of the executive producers of a debut feature starring Zar Amir Ebrahimi, who toplined ‘Holy Spider.’
Leer más »
‘Women, Power, Freedom’: Hear a New Electronic Compilation From 12 Iranian Female ProducersNamed for the slogan of the current Iranian protests, ‘Women, Power, Freedom’ spans techno, breaks and more, with proceeds going to charities that support Iranian women.
Leer más »
Iranian currency falls to record low amid isolation and sanctionsIran's troubled currency fell to a record low against the U.S. dollar on Saturday amid the country's increasing isolation and possible Europe Union sanctions against Tehran's Revolutionary Guards or some of its members.
Leer más »
On a wing and a prayer, central Pa. family finds a long-lost fatherDonna Ferguson never knew her biological father, but DNA testing changed that. It unfurled a wartime story of heroism.
Leer más »