Bashu, the Little Stranger
Bashu, the Little Stranger | |
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Bahram Beizai | |
Starring | Susan Taslimi |
Cinematography | Firooz Malekzadeh |
Release date | 1989 |
Running time | 120 minutes |
Country | Iran |
Languages | Persian Gilaki |
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Bahram Beyzai |
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Bashu, the Little Stranger (
The Institute for Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (IIDCYA) helped produce the film.[3] Bashu, the Little Stranger was voted the "Best Iranian Film of all time" in November 1999 by a Persian movie magazine "Picture world" poll of 150 Iranian critics and professionals.[4] The 2004 Malayalam movie Kaazhcha was reported to be inspired by this movie.[5]
Plot
The film is about a young
Throughout the film, Na'i maintains correspondence with her husband, a war veteran looking for employment, who has been gone for quite some time. She tells him about Bashu, and implores him to return home in time to help with the harvest. Bashu becomes Na'i's helper on the farm, and even accompanies her to the bazaar to sell her goods. Throughout the film, Bashu experiences post-traumatic stress disorder and sees visions of his dead family members, which cause him to wander off. Ultimately, however, he and Na'i are always reunited.
The other adults in the village harangue Na'i about taking Bashu in, often deriding his dark skin and different language, making comments about washing the dark off of his skin. In addition to the village adults, the school-age children taunt and beat Bashu, although the children prove ultimately to be more willing to accept Bashu than the adults. In one scene in which he is being taunted, Bashu picks up a school book and to everybody's surprise, reads aloud a passage stating "We are all the children of Iran" in the Persian language, which is taught in all schools throughout the country. Before this point, the children had assumed Bashu to be either mute or stupid.
In the end, Na'i's husband (played by Parviz Poorhosseini) returns home with no money and missing an arm, having been forced to take on dangerous work that is never identified. He and Na'i argue over her having kept Bashu against his wishes. Bashu comes to her defense, challenging the strange man to identify himself. Na'i's husband tells Bashu that he is his father. Bashu offers to shake hands, before noticing his missed arm. The two bond over their losses and embrace as though they were always a part of the same family. The film ends with the entire family, including children, running into the farm field, making loud noises together to scare away a troublesome boar.
See also
- List of Iranian films
- List of films considered the best
References
- ^ Pelowski, Melissa (2020-02-20). "Dornsife screens Middle Eastern films". Daily Trojan. Retrieved 2022-06-06.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-317-68261-5.
- ^ ""Yadoo" tops at 39th Fajr Film Festival". Tehran Times. 2021-02-12. Retrieved 2022-06-06.
- ISSN 1023-2613
- ^ "Row over Kerala State Films Award - Times of India". The Times of India.
External links
- Bashu at IMDb