Life can easily get hectic in a moment. A hearing aid can get broken, debts can add up, a snafu can happen at work, and in the pursuit to fix all of it, life’s troubles make you forget who you hoped to become. This is what happens in The Song of Sparrows. It’s clear that there’s some inspiration from Italian neo-realist dramas– Karim’s stint as a motorcycle delivery man calls to mind Bicycle Thieves– but filmmaker Majid Majidi finds something spiritual in Karim’s mundane madness, a sense of hope despite all of Karim’s problems. The Song of Sparrows moves the spirit with its simplicity.
"There are enough dashes of originality and narrative surprises to keep adults entertained, at least."
— Adam Woodward
When an ostrich-rancher focuses on replacing his daughter's hearing aid, which breaks right before crucial exams, everything changes for a struggling rural family in Iran. Karim motorbikes into a world alien to him - incredibly hectic Tehran, where sudden opportunities for independence, thrill and challenge him. But his honor and honesty, plus traditional authority over his inventive clan, are tested, as he stumbles among vast cultural and economic gaps between his village nestled in the desert, and a throbbing international metropolis.
When an ostrich-rancher focuses on replacing his daughter's hearing aid, which breaks right before crucial exams, everything changes for a struggling rural family in Iran. Karim motorbikes into a world alien to him - incredibly hectic Tehran, where sudden opportunities for independence, thrill and challenge him. But his honor and honesty, plus traditional authority over his inventive clan, are tested, as he stumbles among vast cultural and economic gaps between his village nestled in the desert, and a throbbing international metropolis.
Berlin
2 wins
Nat. Board of Review
1 win
