The Seed of the Sacred fig | TIFF 2024 | Review by: Amanda Guarragi
Motion pictures can shape our perception of the world. International films help give perspective to different socio-political and religious views not normally shown in Westernized media. Exposure to other countries helps shape our worldview and is vitally important to create compassion and empathy. At the same time, these films have universal themes that can affect others. In The Seed of the Sacred Fig, directed by Mohammad Rasoulof, investigating Judge Iman (Missagh Zareh) navigates the paranoia that comes with the political unrest in Tehran. After his promotion and exploring the true nature of corruption within the system, his perception of the world around him changes. Iman becomes detached from his family, and his wife Najmeh (Soheila Golestani) attempts to hold the family together.
Rasoulof presents a broader narrative at the beginning of the film to show the horrors of the riots in Tehran and the brutality women faced. He incorporates the perspective of Najmeh’s two daughters, Rezvan (Mahsa Rostami) and Sana (Setereh Maleki), who have a modernized view of women’s rights, the judicial system and religion in Tehran. Social media has always given a more honest view of the stories shared on the news, and there is always a different side. Rasoulof integrated phone footage and the spread of misinformation on the news versus social platforms like Instagram and Twitter. He explores the full scope of the media and how multiple perspectives can expand upon the tragedies the community faces. Rezvan’s friend was outspoken and caught up in the riots. She and Sana would express their disdain towards the cops and how women were treated. Rasoulof focused on the mother’s relationship with her daughters because of the generational divide on women’s rights. The traditional perspective versus modernized ideals clashes within the family while the riots occur.
The generalization of the societal issues is brought to a more intimate scale when Iman misplaces the gun that was given to him by one of the other officers. Iman’s gun was a badge of protection as he sent those protesting to prison. He had to make rational decisions biased towards traditional views and those within the system. Moreover, the patriarchial lens of being in law enforcement doesn’t necessarily have women’s rights in contention with decision-making. Once Rasoulof shifts to the more intimate familial issues, it becomes tension-filled and fast-paced to mirror the rising anguish within the family. The conversations between the women in Iman’s family while he takes his stance with his badge, create a universal dialogue that many understand. Iman’s new position as a top investigator bleeds into the family discourse involving the lost gun. What unfolds as a downward spiral of unsettling proportions also shares the narrative that societal conditioning and systemic cycles are from within the family values. Once children grow into teenagers, they begin to form their thoughts and build their worldviews, ultimately clashing with traditional values.
Rasoulof structured the narrative and layered these traditional values to build an impactful ending for The Seed of the Sacred Fig, encapsulating the damaging patriarchial traditions. Even though it started broad in scope, the issues discussed consolidated into a singular person. Iman becomes a reflection of the patriarchial system that his daughters can no longer endure. Sana and Rezvan lash out and unite with their mother, Najmeh, to break down how their family dynamic no longer works. The performances by Rostami, Maleki and Golestani are incredible, as their discussions carry the entirety of the film and show different perspectives. Rasoulof shows the delicate line between motherhood and womanhood with the three of them. Rezvan and Sana are old enough to understand the life their mother had to lead living with their father. There’s also the shift in perception from viewing Iman as their father versus an investigator in the force versus a man living in society. The film may feel tedious towards the middle, but everything Rasoulof weaves into the narrative pays off in the third act.
4.5/5
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