The Seed and the Sacred Fig
Mohammad Rasoulof shot the film in secret, stitched in real footage of the 2022–2023 protests in Iran that were suppressed by the Iranian authorities, was sentenced to eight years in prison and flogging, and successfully fled to Europe to attend his film’s premiere at Cannes. Rasoulof filmmaking story alone is incredible, let alone that his film, The Seed and the Sacred Fig, came out as a deeply powerful cinematic experience. The film follows an investigating judge in the Revolutionary Court in Tehran, who’s paranoia amongst the backdrop of nationwide protests and changing societal norms drives him mad and destroys his family life. All of the performances, Missagh Zareh as the judge and Soheila Golestani as his wife, are heartbreakingly emotional, as you helplessly observe how the system they’re caught up in reinforce and manipulate their personalities and values to corrupt their family life. You see them transform and warp as their faith in the system, their values, and each other all come to blows. The Seed and the Sacred Fig is a powder keg building to a heart-wrenching burst.
