Ali Behrad’s entry to Karlovy Vary’s Special Screenings blends romance and energy to capture a city teeming with life and memory
In his blistering sophomore feature, Iranian director Ali Behrad does more than keep his titular promise to reveal another side of his home town. Straightforward storytelling allows room for a meditation on illusions, identity, and individualism within the kinetic backdrop of contemporary Tehran. The deceptively simple plot has two former lovers meet and reminisce on what once drove them together – and then apart. Leili (Anahita Afshar) and Pasha (Ali Shadman) encounter each other again at the wedding of a mutual friend. The celebratory context of happy and hopeful romance evokes melancholic memories of their shared past. Though non-confrontational, this key moment is heavy with unresolved emotions, lingering resentment, and regret.
As memories bleed into the present, intricate flashbacks reveal what happened between them. The humorous, upbeat beginnings mark an engaging contrast with the disillusioned opening scene. Behrad doesn’t shy away from silly spectacle and rom-com tropes to lighten up the mood. The romantic spark with Leili sets Pasha literally on fire, and his crush on her gives him a concussion. However, his knowing scenario rather plays with cinematic conventions instead of blindly following them. Euphoric, erratic beginnings set the tone for an affair defined by thrill and emotional tension. Though the dramatic arc is familiar, its sharp execution and unusual setting give it a fresh feeling. Incompatible needs slowly encroach on their palpable passion.
Leili’s need for space and autonomy also reflects her inner rebellion against a patriarchal society that refuses it to women. Pasha, on the other hand, longs for commitment and closeness. The more he clings to her, the more she pulls away. Part of the originality of this almost classic scenario comes from its nonchalant acceptance of romantic impermanence. Their growing distance doesn’t blow up into an existential tragedy. Not every union is meant to last, which doesn’t necessarily make it a mistake. As the two venture through the city, their fleeting feelings for each other make everyday occurrences feel adventurous, and adventurous undertakings – such as carwalking – trivial. As they are young and in love, each experience feels momentous.
Visual fluidity and lively direction accelerate the events, speckled with moments of comedy, kinetic action, and stylized dreaminess. Yet, the plot still allows for quiet moments of emotional intimacy. The setting’s cultural specificity is never weighted down by exoticism. The young protagonists’ Tehran is a place of paintball games, basement parties, and drunken late-night drifting, pulsing with life and creativity. There is a sense that the very act of a young generation enjoying themselves becomes rebellious in the face of surveillance and repression. Still, this near-equation of youthful hedonism and protest ignores the social privilege required for the former. This absence of social structural nuances feels more negligent than the absence of overt political commentary.
A pop-heavy soundtrack punctuates emotional beats with songs that align with the characters’ interior lives, underscoring their unity or dissonance. Dynamic performances convey the protagonists’ volatile chemistry. Anahita Afshar makes Leili the more self-aware and determined of the two. Cinematographer Ali Ghazi’s polished 4K digital clarity comes with a hint of artifice that paradoxically blends smoothly into the overarching theme of amorous exuberance and love-struck detachment. Behrad’s vision, as sleek and modernist, provides a stark contrast to the oppressive concrete structures commonly associated with the capital. It is this sense of novelty, underscored by the echo of bittersweet memories and moods, through which this falling-in-and-out-of-love story makes a lasting impression.
- OT: Tehran, Kenarat
- Director: Ali Behrad
- Year: 2025
