The Past

"Iranian director Asghar Farhadi (A Separation) heads to France for this tightly-wound drama about a broken love triangle and its ripple effects on a modern-day imperfect blended family. When Ahmad comes to stay at Marie’s rickety home in a non-descript Parisian suburb he doesn’t turn up as the evil ex. Farhadi’s too perceptive a filmmaker to conjure up villains and victims - instead he directs an elegant domestic drama to feel more like a mystery. Gradually the past is unfurled to reveal who has done good and who has done bad and how that inescapably fuels the present, no matter what new direction lives take."

"An indelible tapestry of carefully engineered revelations and deeper human truths."

"It’s almost impossible to describe the narrative specifics of The Past without making the movie seem ridiculously hammy. Indeed, several twists involving Samir, a dry cleaner with plenty of his own troubles, tip a bit into hoary melodramatics."

"The narrative complications can be distracting, at times exasperating, but they're finally irrelevant because Mr. Farhadi's filmmaking is so fluid..."

"It is an intricate and often brilliant drama, with restrained and intelligent performances; there is an elegantly patterned mosaic of detail, unexpected plot turns, suspenseful twists and revelations."

"Farhadi isn’t interested in judging his characters so much as comprehending them in all their complexity, and registering the consequences of their actions, particularly on children."

"Iranian filmmaker Asghar Farhadi pursues his exploration of guilt, choice and responsibility in a superbly written, directed and acted drama that commands attention every step of the way."