Taste of Cherry

1997 movie

Rating: 17/20

Plot: A guy drives his truck around in search of somebody who will bury him under a tree after he commits suicide.

Roger Ebert famously despised this movie, and I can understand the arguments he makes that it's not very engaging, that it leaves too many questions unanswered about the protagonist and his motivations, and that there's a pointlessness to the deliberate pacing. I think it's a near-masterpiece that has this ability to say so many things in such simple ways. Simple shots of landscape or the meandering truck, dialogue between the suicidal guy and one other person at a time with simple camera shots by Abbas Kiarostami himself from one seat or the other in the truck, and a complete lack of flash give this a gritty and poetic tone. In a way, that matter-of-fact tone and complete lack of cinematic flair make the single moment in time that this movie focuses on that much more profound. As with all movies that give the audience this much space, Kiarostami almost forces you to consider what is happening with the protagonist and how difficult the favor he's asking of others might be.

All the ironic shots of bulldozers or other large digging and dirt-dumping machines while this poor guy can't find anybody to bury him. A soldier, a religious fellow, a taxidermist. What's the significance of those roles? Is there a sneaky humor below the surface of all the melancholy? What are we to think about the meta-rific surprise after the story's denouement?

I really liked Homayoun Ershadi in the lead role, mostly because of how flat he is. He plays this part with almost no emotion, and although that could make the whole thing very cold, especially with Kiarostami's minimalistic approach, it really does more to create this haunting mystique.