A portrait of a family conflict that becomes an x-ray of the frictions of Iranian society from the Revolution in 1979 to the present day.
The honest voice of director Firouzeh Khosrovani opens the documentary with an enigmatic statement: "My mother married a photo of my father." This is not a metaphor. Tayi literally married a portrait of Hossein in Tehran. Firouzeh’s father was studying radiology in Switzerland and her mother could not leave the country to go and live with him if they were not married.
The astonishing wedding illustrates the abyss that still exists in their marriage: Tayi is a devout Muslim and Hossein is the son of a progressive and secular family. The frictions of this fascinating family history are like an x-ray of the conflicts in Iranian society from the 1979 Islamic Revolution to the present day.
The innovative treatment of family archival material — letters, audios, photographs, home videos, and drawings — to reflect on Iran’s recent history earned Khosrovani’s film the award for Best Documentary at IDFA 2020.
