Episode 33: A Separation (Iran) (2011) (Guest: Dr. Golbarg Rekabtalaei)
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Description
A Separation (2011) is an Iranian drama written and directed by Asghar Farhadi. The film depicts the martial separation between a middle-class couple, Nadar (Peyman Moaadi) and his wife Simin (Leila Hatami). Simin wants the family to leave Iran to make a better life for their 10-year-old daughter Termeh, but Nadar does not want to leave his father who is suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. So Nadar refuses to go and also refuses to give permission for their daughter to leave. The film also depicts the conflict that results when Nadar allegedly pushes his father’s new, lower-income caregiver, Razieh (Sareh Bayat) down the stairs during an altercation, causing her to miscarry. A Separation centers around the two legal cases: the divorce proceedings between Nadar and Simin; and the criminal proceedings against Nadar. It provides a window not only into law in Iran but also into the complex forces of politics, class, and religion that shape modern Iranian society.
Guest: Dr. Golbarg Rekabtalaei
Golbarg Rekabtalaei is Associate Professor in the Department of History at Seton Hall University. Professor Rekabtalaei is a historian of modern Iran, and the Middle East at large. Her research focuses on the formation of a cosmopolitan modernity in twentieth century Iran through cultural exchanges and cinematic relations between Iran and the world. Professor Rekabtalaei examines the relationship between cinema and modernity, cosmopolitanism, urbanization, nationalism, and revolutions, with a particular focus on the role of cinema. In addition to numerous other scholarly works, she is the author of Iranian Cosmopolitanism: A Cinematic History (Cambridge University Press 2019).
Timestamps:
0:00 Introduction
2:21 An introduction to Iranian cinema
7:21 The cosmopolitanism of Iranian cinema
10:45 Government restrictions on cinema in Iran
14:17 The legal context for A Separation
16:18 Divorce law in Iran
20:09 The film’s opening scene
24:02 Abortion and criminal law in A Separation
31:13 Diyat (or “blood money” payments in Iran)
35:44 Criminal investigations and procedure in Iran
39:30 Imprisonment of debtors
41:44 A social drama told through legal process
46:25 The Green Movement in Iran
48:46 Other films about Iranian law and society
Further Reading:
Becker, Ben, “‘A Separation’: Exploring Class, Marriage, and Morality through Iranian Culture,” Cinemablography
Burke, Jospeh, “Rediscovering Morality through Asghar Farhadi’s ‘A Separation,’” Senses of Cinema (Dec. 2011)
Haqshenas, Saleh, Badiei, Sediqeh & Narmani, Hamid, “Iran's Perspective: A Deconstructive Analysis of "A Separation Movie" Through Application of Binary Opposition,” International Researchers vol 2, no. 1 (Mar. 2013)
Kirshner, Jonathan, “Secrets, Lies, and Censorship: The Revelation of Asghar Farhadi’s Films,” Boston Review (Aug. 14, 2024)
Rekabtalaei, Golbarg, Iranian Cosmopolitanism: A Cinematic History (2019)
Romig, Rollo, “Blood Money: Crime and Punishment in ‘A Separation,’” New Yorker (Feb. 24, 2012)
Publication Date
10-22-2024
Disciplines
Law
Recommended Citation
Hafetz, Jonathan, "Episode 33: A Separation (Iran) (2011) (Guest: Dr. Golbarg Rekabtalaei)" (2024). Season 03. 15.
https://scholarship.shu.edu/law-on-film-s03/15
