Shokaran Review



	Posted: Sun., 4/29/01, 7:40pm PT Hemlock Shokaran (Iran) An Iranian Film Society release of a Sureh Cinema Development Organization presentation. Produced by Seyyed Zia Hashemi. Directed by Behrooz Afkhami. Screenplay, Minoo Farshchi, Afkhami. Mahmoud - Fariborz Arab-Nia Sima - Hedieh Tehrani Khakpour - Hamid Reza Afshar Taraneh - Manoucher Sadeghpour Mahmoud - Mohammad Saleh Allah
	----- By ROBERT KOEHLER <mailto:webeditors@variety.cahners.com?subject=Re:%20Hemlock> ----- The pitfalls of "temporary marriage" -- a ritual in Islamic countries that's intriguingly puzzling to Westerners -- is the emotionally fertile ground of "Hemlock," a potent if ultimately contrived drama covering the adult side of the Iranian cinema panorama. A major hit in its native country last year, pic will attract a largely Farsi-speaking aud in Stateside four-walling in cities with Iranian populations, but will likely leave Yank viewers scratching their heads. Director Behrooz Afkhami, who as a reform candidate won election to the Iran Parliament last year, and co-scripter Minoo Farshchi operate in a more commercial zone than do most of the Iranian filmmakers known in the West. Pic reps the kind of drama moviegoers in Tehran and other cities actually flock to see, and thus provides an essential, broader view of the national cinema. At the same time, "Hemlock" avoids the cruder, melodramatic route for a middle-of-the-road approach festooned with half-developed plot points, complex characters and subtly shaded perfs by an extraordinarily attractive cast. Early stages hint at an entirely different tale than actually develops in the story set in the spring of 1995, centering on family man and factory manager Mahmoud (Fariborz Arab-Nia), who lives in a small burg 180 miles from Tehran. At home, he's served hand and foot by smiling, servile wife Taraneh (Rozita Ghafari); at work, he's hounded by a financial nightmare. Factory partner Khakpour (Hamid Reza Afshar) is seriously hurt in a mysterious crash that seems to be related to the company's money problems. But the key drama begins when Mahmoud visits his mending partner in Tehran hospital and meets ombudsperson Sima (Hedieh Tehrani), whose striking beauty dazzles the work-slogged Mahmoud. While Mahmoud tells Sima upfront that he's happily married and doesn't want to get too involved, she appears to have another agenda. Mahmoud's daily hospital visits afford plenty of extra time with Sima, and quickly he invites her into a temporary marriage. Wedlock (and sex) occur off-screen, but the central reason for Mahmoud's offer is that, as a man in an Islamic society, he can only bed a woman other than his wife if he arranges such a temporary, time-limited arrangement. Viewers lacking this cultural knowledge will, sadly, be in a fog, since pic's conflicts hinge on the couple's crucial decision. "Hemlock" evolves into a kind of mind game, as Sima, a divorcee, is driven by obsession for Mahmoud and won't accept his demands to call off their affair. Through a clever set of Hitchcockian cuts that deny information and extend the suspense, Afkhami builds considerable tension that amplifies this mystery of the human heart. More handsome stars than Arab-Zia and Tehrani cannot be found anywhere, including Hollywood, and each delivers the sort of quiet, broiling moments of unspoken feeling that speak volumes about the contorted sexual roundelays that go on behind closed doors in contempo Iranian bedrooms. Though the script confines secondary roles to types, perfs and pic's mood touch upon life as it's lived in the country's upper middle class, even as Afkhami eschews the street-level docu-style of his critically lauded peers. Widescreen print screened was notably flawed, more the fault of the lab than production. Camera (color, widescreen), Nemat Haghighi; editors, Mohammadreza Moini, Mehrzad Minooi; sound, Mohammad Alizadeh. Reviewed at the Music Hall, Beverly Hills, April 12, 2001. Running time: 86 MIN. © 2001 Cahners Business Information © 2001 Variety, Inc.