Callie Walker A Separation Due 31 OCT 13 A separation is an Iranian film that begins with a couple in front of a hidden judge talking to the camera They are clearly in distress regarding their marriage and are consulting him to grant them a divorce Simin wants to leave the country with her daughter to raise her with a better life her husband Nader refuses to leave with her because of his elderly father who is stricken with alzheimer s and needs constant attention This film written and directed by Asghar Farhadi does not feel especially constrained considering all of the restrictions imposed by the Iranian government It seems to be an honest movie about the difficulties faced when dreams are pursued This film highlights the societal differences between sex religion and class especially well Simin and Nader only partially achieve their wishes when they went to see the judge Because Nader refuses to agree outright to a divorce and will not give required permission for his daughter to travel abroad he and Simin cannot reconcile She goes to live with her parents and he hires a woman named to look after his father and fill many of the roles the Simin once held in the home The woman hired as caretaker is pregnant and brings with her a young child She is a conservative and obviously poor woman who has taken this job without the knowledge of her husband She is fairly unreliable and is a recipe for chaos in Nader s household from the get go A series of events unfold and Nader is back in court with Razieh and her husband who is an unemployed shoemaker in heavy debt He is clearly very resentful and embarrassed by his situation The film shows Nader s suspicion as to the cause of his caretakers miscarriage early on and makes this point more well know as the court scene progresses The conflict between the two families is inflamed by social tension To Razieh and her husband Nader and Simin represent the entitled few They believe that they have no respect for religion and are uncompassionate and conceited They do not know the struggles of the average person and thus any attempt at compassion is felt as condescension There are parts of this film that show the human side of these people who often seem to be desperately trying to cover their tracks Termeh the couples daughter is very studious her father takes pride in her education and this often shows his stern and inflexible nature She is desperate to please her parents particularly her father but feels inwardly guilty that she cannot go with her mother A young woman she is terrified that her family will fall apart She has a hope despite her shyness that everything will be ok In my opinion the frustrations of modern city life in a restrictive country with numerous economic social and societal demands is shown clearly in this film Daily life is a struggle and the characters are often shown weary The most fascinating thing in my opinion however is the dedication all of the characters show No matter how weary frustrated or angry they get manners are alway minded The capture of this deeply ingrained self control is what makes this movie award worthy There are many questions left at the end of the movie Throughout the film the characters actions are viewed with sympathy the heartbreaker is Termeh and her elusive decision in the court scene at the very end