“Stranger” Give Us a Lovely Snapshot of Rural Life in Iran
A new KIDS FIRST! Film “Stranger” just joined the film festival lineup. Set in a beautiful rural village in Iran, a new teacher moves to the village to educate the children. A young widow attracts the attention of the teacher, but a local, wealthy (and married) villager is in love with the widow. The villager schemes to run the teacher out of town and torches the school to force him to leave. The teacher saves a student caught in the fire, but leaves so the village can live in peace.
Much
of the interest of this film is the view of life in rural Iran that we never see. The basic issues woman’s right in Iranian society are portrayed here with the men wearing polo shirts and the women dressed from the 14th century. The male dominated society is portrayed when the wealthy villager forces his wife to accept the possibility of the young widow living in their home and the widow’s brother threatens to beat her if she does not obey his orders. However, the widow does own a small piece of property that her recently deceased father bequeathed to her.
The film is beautifully shot and although sub-titled, easy to follow. Recommended Ages: 12-18. Runtime 90 minutes.
