The Fish Fall In Love (Global Lens Collection/2006/Iran/First Run DVD)
Picture: C
Sound: C+ Extras: C+ Film: C+
How many more films about cooking and drama are we going
to get? Not that it is an original idea,
but films keep being made around it and none have become classics. Many have been overrated, but few have taken
it into the more serious realm that Ali Ruffi’s The Fish Fall In Love (2006) does because it deals with the hatred
men have for women in Iran and in effect, other Islamic countries where
antiquated notions of women long obsolete have been kept alive so the wrong
people (soulless men with nothing to do in particular) stay in power.
The tale involves a restaurant run by Atieh, a young lady
who loves food, but former lover Aziz reenters her life two decades after the
affair and wants to close the place for good.
Why? She decides to appeal to him
by making him food, but something more is going on here and this will be no
feel-good Hollywood film.
Unfortunately, the 96 minutes can only offer so much more
so due to ideas than length. I was
hoping for something more damning, but the director may fear execution in his
pseudo-democratic country. The result is
that things that need to be said are done in subtle ways, but that is not
enough to save the film overall. Still,
it has its moments and under the circumstances, is amazing it was made at all.
The letterboxed 1.66 X 1 image is not the best transfer,
with slight digititis and haziness throughout (did they need to smuggle this
one out?) and detail issues all over, though the good color manages to come
through in a limited way. The Dolby
Digital 2.0 Stereo is just fine for a recent production, but is not consistent
and can have some off moments. Extras include
PDF files you can access via DVD-ROM about the film and culture, plus two
Global Lens preview sections.
- Nicholas Sheffo
