The Willow Tree (2005) Beed-e majnoon (original title)

Director:

Majid Majidi

Writers:

Majid Majidi (idea)
Majid Majidi (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

3 August 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Youssef, a blind university professor, is suddenly diagnosed with a fatal disease and must undergo treatment in France. Back home, will he find the life he had before?

Plot Keywords:

Rumi | Blindness | Iranian | Hospital | Religious Propaganda

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Parviz Parastui	...	Youssef
Roya Taymourian	...	Roya
Afarin Obeisi	...	Mother
Mohammad Amir Naji	...	Morteza
Melika Eslafi	...	Mariam
Leila Outadi	...	Pari
Mahmoud Behraznia	...	Mahmood
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Dawlat Asadi	...	Puya
Melika Aslafi	...	Maryam
Ahmad Gavaheri	...	Cashani
Fouad Nahas	...	Dr. Roque

Directed by
Majid Majidi

Writing credits
Majid Majidi		(idea)
Majid Majidi		(screenplay) and
Fouad Nahas		(screenplay) &
Nasser Hashemzadeh		(screenplay)

Produced by
Majid Majidi	....	producer
Seyyed Saeed Seyedzadeh	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Ahmad Pezhman

Cinematography by
Bahram Badakshani		(some scenes)
Mahmoud Kalari

Film Editing by
Hassan Hassandoost

Production Design by
Behzad Kazzazi

Set Decoration by
Saeed Ahangarani

Makeup Department
Mehdi Habibipur	....	second makeup artist
Jahanjoo Jafary	....	makeup artist
Mohsen Mossavi	....	makeup designer
Affarine Sadeghi	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Javad Noruzbegi	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Waheed Kashi	....	second assistant director
Hassan Najafi	....	first assistant director
Behzad Rafi	....	third assistant director

Sound Department
Hossein Bashash	....	boom operator
Mohammad Reza Delpak	....	sound re-recording mixer
Yadollah Najafi	....	sound recordist
Amir Tusi	....	assistant sound editor

Special Effects by
Mohsen Ruzbahani	....	special effects

Visual Effects by
Sianoosh Nasiriziba	....	digital effects supervisor

Camera and Electrical Department
Hashem Attar	....	still photographer
Mohammad Davudi	....	cinematographer: some scenes
Mohammad Ibrahimian	....	assistant camera

Animation Department
Sianoosh Nasiriziba	....	animator

Other crew
Bahman Dadashi	....	technical advisor
Hormoz Larijani	....	financial manager
Nava Rohani	....	script supervisor

Production Companies

• Majid Majidi Film Production (I) (II)
• Soureh

Distributors

• Cathay-Keris Films (2007) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• Festive Films (2007) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• GreeneStreet Films International (2006) (USA) (theatrical)
• New Yorker Films (2007) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• New Yorker Films (2007) (USA) (all media)

Other Companies

• Fat Dot  publicity

Also Known As:

"Beed-e majnoon" - Iran (original title)
"Weeping Willow" - International (English title) (festival title)

Runtime:

USA:96 min | Canada:96 min (Toronto International Film Festival)

Country:

Iran

Language:

Persian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Singapore:PG | Mexico:A | South Korea:All

Filming Locations:

Paris, France

Company:

Majid Majidi Film Production (I) (II)

When a blessing becomes a curse

In the lyrical and touching Iranian drama "The Willow Tree," a middle-aged college professor, blind since the age of eight, regains his sight after undergoing a cornea transplant.

Through the years, Yusef has learned to function in a world of darkness. He even long ago stopped blaming God for his condition (he went blind while playing with firecrackers as a boy). Having made his peace with his situation, Yusef is now suddenly confronted with the unforeseen mixed blessing of regaining his sight. On the one hand, he yearns to be able to once again behold the vast and myriad beauties of the visual world; on the other, he risks losing the sense of security and comfort that comes from living in a world that is real and familiar to him.

Director Majid Majidi captures some of the visual sensory overload Yusef experiences when he is once again reunited with the sighted world, which includes seeing his wife and young daughter for the first time. And how will the change in his condition affect the couple's relationship - the roles each of them plays within that relationship, and the ways in which they interact with one another? For now that he is no longer dependent on others to get around and is free to do things on his own, Yusef begins to press against the tightly-bound parameters of his heavily circumscribed life, falling for a beautiful young student in one of his classes and becoming less willing to play the part of the uncomplaining, long-suffering victim to please his wife and mother who have found their own purpose and meaning in taking care of him all these years. Then Fate plays a cruel trick on him, making him realize that he can never be fully happy in either state of sightedness (Majidi doesn't cater to his audience's desire for an uplifting, happy ending).

To emphasize the way in which Yousef experiences the world, the movie features a hyper-sensitive soundtrack filled with the amplified sounds of birds chirping, water gurgling, leaves rustling, raindrops falling, etc. The only real disappointment is the musical score, which is often lugubrious, soupy and overly-emphatic.

Much of "The Willow Trees"'s success can be attributed to Parviz Parastui's subtle and wide-ranging performance in the lead role. As Yusef, Parastui runs the gamut from submissive introvert to railing despondent without hitting a single false note at either end.