Crimson Gold (Jafar Panahi & Abbas Kiarostami)
June's Top 30 Films
•
1h 36m
Directed by Jafar Panahi • Written by Abbas Kiarostami * Drama • With Hossain Emadeddin • 2003 • 95 minutes
Two master filmmakers, Abbas Kiarostami (A Taste of Cherry) and Jafar Panahi (The Circle, Taxi) team up as writer and director, respectively, on Crimson Gold, a subtle tragedy on class conflict in modern Iran.
Hussein (Hossain Emadeddin, a real-life pizza delivery man who has schizophrenia) is a lumbering war veteran swollen by cortisone (for war-induced pain) and reduced to delivering pizzas at night. Through his nightly rounds, he bears witness to the rewards and vanities of the city’s wealthy. He is humiliated when a jewelry shop owner won’t allow him in his store, and under pressure to get married, Hussein awkwardly aspires to higher ground. When an eccentric socialite gives him a taste of luxury, Hussein can no longer accept his lowly status.
Kiarostami based the story on an actual newspaper account of a botched robbery attempt at a Tehranian jewelry store by a desperate pizza deliveryman.
Up Next in June's Top 30 Films
-
Milestones (Robert Kramer)
Directed by Robert Kramer and John Douglas • Documentary • 1975 • 195 minutes
MILESTONES is a lilting, free-associative masterpiece that follows dozens of characters — including hippies, farmers, immigrants, Native Americans, and political activists — as they try to reconcile their ideals with t...
-
300 Trillion – The Debt Trap
Directed by Rudolph Herzog • Documentary • 2022 • 80 minutes
The worldwide mountain of debt is more than 300% of the world's annual economic output. Since the pandemic, debt expansion is out of control. Will the system collapse under its weight?
The film explores the significance of our debt si...
-
The Bohemian
Directed by Petr Václav • Drama • With Vojtech Dyk, Elena Radonicich • 2024 • 142 minutes
In 18th century Italy, aspiring opera composer Josef Mysliveček dreams of becoming a musician. His ambitions lead him to embark on a journey, exploring the world of opera to fulfill his destiny. Against all...
