Movie Review – African Violet

African Violet Iran (2019) Dir. Mona Zandi Haqiqi If one thing is guaranteed to jeopardise or ruin a relationship it is the spectre of an old flame, be it an ex-parter or spouse. Sometimes this can’t be helped if children are involved and paths will inevitably cross, otherwise distances are usually kept if both parties have moved on. It’s when they haven’t moved on that could cause problems. Shokoo (Fatemeh Motamed Arya) is upset to learn her ex-husband Fereydoun (Reza Babak) is being put in a nursing home by their daughter Shahla (Maryam Shirazi). Shoko intervenes and takes Fereydoun home to live with her and husband Reza (Saeed Aghakhani), who reluctantly agrees to this act of compassion. However, Reza and Fereydoun used to be friends and things are a now little sore between them. Things weren’t great between Shokoo and Fereydoun when they were married and now both are older, the awkwardness of being in Shokoo’s care has left Fereydoun reluctant to speak, whilst Reza suffers from jealousy. Yet it is Reza who Fereydoun eventually opens up to while Shokoo finds herself embroiled in problems involving other members of the community when trying to the right thing. Given the social upheaval and oppression that blights life in Iran, it is arguably the last country you’d expect to produce a film on the subject of forgiveness, empathy, and the power of open communication. Then again, maybe they are so ensconced in negativity and division that what is such a fragile commodity to them is something they need reminding still exists, hopefully without the filmmaker being jailed for it. Mona Zandi Haqiqi, in her second film, is up to the task with African Violet, opting for something colourful and light in tone as opposed to the dour, confrontational output we’ve come to expect from Iran. The story is reportedly based on Haqiqi’s own aunt to what extent I don’t know but we can assume from the character of Shokoo, she was a strong women and this is what Haqiqi wanted to represent in her film, rather than the usual victim of society. Of the three principals, Shokoo is the most forceful and proactive as evinced by the way she got Reza onside with her plan despite his reservations, and gets Fereydoun out of the home also with no complaints. from him. It did require a little subterfuge and dishonesty on Shokoo’s part, claiming she had her daughter’s permission to mover Fereydoun, assuming either the home wouldn’t check or it would be a while before Shahla would. Almost in a state of bewilderment, Fereydoun is wheeled into Shokoo’s home, a small side room with an old mattress on a rickety bed to call his own. Reza tries to remain polite around Fereydoun but in private he can’t hide his disapproval. They are not exactly flush with money despite Shokoo’s wool dying business and Reza’s carpentry, so running up debt is easily done and soon to increase with Fereydoun now onboard. Whilst Shokoo is out one day, Reza discovers Fereydoun has been wetting the bed which Reza decides to keep from Shokoo and deal with himself with expensive consequences. Putting his feelings aside, Reza feels like the men should stick together and Fereydoun finally speaks. When Shokoo discovers Fereydoun can speak, she sits him down to clear the air and correct some misunderstandings regarding their divorce and Shokoo’s remarriage. Now tensions are easing up, Reza fears a reconciliation might be on the cards between Shokoo and Fereydoun, so he goes on a charm offensive to prove his love for Shokoo. Alas, it doesn’t run so smoothly as Shokoo has other worries – local girl Fereshteh (Neda Jebraeili) wants to leave the country but is scared to tell her single mother Soraya (Roya Javidnia), so Fereshteh asks Shokoo to tell Soraya for her then runs away. Despite running for 93-minutes, Haqiqi and writer Hamidreza Bababeygi cram a lot of story into this time, which sadly means a rushed denouement just as things were starting to catch fire. For example, Fereydoun has learned from Shokoo’s generosity and decides to he needs to unburden himself from her and makes a startling suggestion which goes nowhere. It wasn’t crucial but would have added an extra dynamic to the story had it reached a conclusion. Featuring a sexless love triangle might be a byproduct of Iranian’s strict censorship laws along with the players being older people, but is a welcome one, keeping things oddly wholesome without being chaste yet allows for the humanist drama to take centre stage. Surprising in its absence is fraught tension; instead the situations serves more as lessons to be learned on a journey to be better people who can appreciate what they have or had. Like a clock, Shokoo keeps on ticking in the face of adversity yet there is something quietly indomitable about how she hides it with grace, relayed formidably by Fatemeh Motamed Arya. In contrast to the idea women are second class citizens in Iran, if it wasn’t for Shokoo the men in her life would crumble thus it is ironic Shokoo’s actions prove more beneficial and productive than theirs, delineated with great pathos by Reza Babak and Saeed Aghakhani. Presentation wise, Haqiqi defiantly fills the screen with bold colours whilst showing a side of Tehran rarely seen, i.e. its parks and country lanes, a nice change from rural slums and urban austerity. Black burkas and hijabs are replaced by head scarves and more conventional attire to create a sense of something closer to equality than we’ve seen before, invoking an overall positive vibe. Rushed ending aside, there is a heart warming tale driving African Violet that doesn’t read as something you’d expect from Iran, therefore it’s impact is deeper in revealing another side to a country with a poor social reputation. And the beauty of it is it doesn’t come across as pleasing the censors by not being inflammatory, it’s rebellious side is in its upbeat and positive outlook. A nice thoughtful little film.