About Elly

Darbareye Elly

Iran

2009

119 Min

Color

1.85:1

Farsi, German

Currently 4.0/5 Stars.
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PROD Asghar Farhadi, Simaye Mehr, Mahmoud Razavi

SCR Asghar Farhadi, Azad Jafarian

CAST Golshifteh Farahani, Taraneh Alidoosti, Mani Haghighi, Merila Zarei, Shahab Hosseini

MUSIC Andrea Bauer

London (Film on the Square), AFI FEST, São Paulo, Berlinale (Competition): Best Director, Tribeca: Best Narrative Feature, Abu Dhabi (World Cinema Showcase)

Synopsis

After many years living in Germany, Ahmad is visiting Iran. His old university friends organize a three-day break on the Caspian Sea. The joyful Sepideh plans the reunion but, unbeknownst to her colleagues, invites Elly, her daughter’s nursery school teacher. Ahmad, exiting an unhappy German marriage, would like to settle down with an Iranian woman. The friends, realizing why Sepideh has invited Elly, pay her particular attention and laud her qualities.

On the second day an incident occurs which leads to Elly’s disappearance. The joyful atmosphere evaporates as the friends try to understand how and why she is no longer there. Panic sets in. The friends become judgmental and try to find fault in Elly’s character. The group’s opinion of Elly veers from those of the first day, until at last the truth is out. –Regent Releasing

Director

Asghar Farhadi

Asghar Farhadi was born in 1972 in Isfahan, Iran. Whilst at school he became interested in writing, drama and the cinema, took courses at the Iranian Young Cinema Society and started his career as a filmmaker by making super 8mm and 16mm films.

He graduated with a Master’s Degree in Film Direction from Tehran University in 1998. During his studies, he wrote and directed several student plays, wrote for the national radio and directed a number of TV series, including episodes of Tale of a City.

In 2001, Farhadi wrote the screenplay for Ebrahim Hatamikia’s box-office and critical success Low Heights.

His directorial debut was in 2003 with Dancing in the Dust. After Beautiful City, in 2004, and Fireworks Wednesday in 2006, Farhadi directed About Elly, winning the Silver Bear for Best Director at the 2009 Berlin International Film Festival and Best Narrative Feature at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival.

A Separation… read more

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oldeuboi

22Mar13

A heartbreaking and intense drama with a real sense of thrill. Farhadi definitely a champion director.

Siavash Aliparast

25Feb13

Farhadi's best movie IMO.

amin likes this

deni.a

9Jan13

really really heartwarming and superb acting!

sami

25Nov12

Although About Elly’s came out in the UK in 2012, it was actually made two years before "A Separation". Those two films are equally superb; they’re both intensely gripping psychological thrillers and they both rely on a sensational ensemble cast (sidenote: Peyman Moadi and Shahab Hosseini play friends in "About Elly" and enemies in "A Separation").