Turtles Can Fly (2004)
"Lakposhtha parvaz mikonand" (original title)

Near the Iraqi-Turkish border on the eve of an American invasion, refugee children like 13-year-old Kak (Ebrahim), gauge and await their fate.

Director:

Bahman Ghobadi

Writer:

Bahman Ghobadi

Stars:

Soran Ebrahim, Avaz Latif, Saddam Hossein Feysal

20 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview:
Soran Ebrahim	...	Satellite
Avaz Latif	...	Agrin
Saddam Hossein Feysal	...	Pashow
Hiresh Feysal Rahman	...	Hengov
Abdol Rahman Karim	...	Riga
Ajil Zibari	...	Shirkooh

Storyline

Set in Ghobadi's native Kurdistan, close to the Turkey-Iran border. Soran is a 13-year-old boy who orders other children around as he installs an antenna for villagers keen to hear of Saddam's fall. Eventually, he falls for Agrin but is disturbed by her brother Henkov, who was left armless after he stepped on a landmine and who can now seemingly predict the future.

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Plot Keywords:

american | landmine | kurdistan | refugee | boy | 

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for violence, disturbing images and mature thematic material, all involving children

Details

Country:

Iran France Iraq

Language:

Kurdish

Release Date:

23 February 2005 (France)

Also Known As:

Turtles Can Fly

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$29,107 (USA) (18 February 2005)

Gross:

$256,822 (USA) (24 June 2005)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mij Film Co., Bac Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min 97 min 92 min (TV)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Selected as Iran's submission in the Best Foreign Film category for the 2004 Oscars.

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Connections

References Titanic (1997)

User Reviews

Remarkably manages to sustain a burning candle of hope, however faint the glow.

A viewing of this film earlier tonight at the Chicago Film Festival was immediately followed, in my case, by a trip to a bathroom stall where I stared blankly at a wall for fifteen minutes amidst a state of pure, and surprisingly prolonged, emotional helplessness. Prior to this evening, Schindler's List, Life is Beautiful and a select handful of others comprised my elite list of unforgettable films that fearlessly tackle the ambivalent, or at least paradoxical, human condition by managing to straddle the inherent injustice and the unfettered hope of perseverance, but Turtles Can Fly now ranks above all others. Despite frequenting this website for years, I have never been previously inspired to comment on anything.