Persian Lessons (2020)

A young Jewish man pretends to be Iranian to avoid being executed in a concentration camp.

Director:

Vadim Perelman

Writers:

Ilja Zofin (screenplay) (as Ilya Tsofin), Wolfgang Kohlhaase (novel)

Stars:

Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, Lars Eidinger, Jonas Nay

2 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nahuel Pérez Biscayart	...	Gilles
Lars Eidinger	...	Klaus Koch
Jonas Nay	...	Max
David Schütter	...	Paul
Alexander Beyer	...	Camp Commandant
Andreas Hofer	...	Adjutant von Dewitz
Leonie Benesch	...	Elsa
Luisa-Céline Gaffron	...	Jana
Nico Ehrenteit	...	SS-Obersturmführer Eugen Krupp
Giuseppe Schillaci	...	Marco Rossi
Antonin Chalon	...	Jacob Rossi
Serge Barbagallo	...	France KAPO
Peter Beck	...	Nazi Doctor
Felix von Bredow	...	SS-Untersturmführer Siemens
Pascal Elso	...	French Policeman

Storyline

1942. Gilles, a young Belgian man, is arrested by the SS alongside other Jews and sent to a concentration camp in Germany. He narrowly avoids execution by swearing to the guards that he is not Jewish, but Persian. This lie temporarily saves him, but then Gilles is assigned a seemingly untenable mission: to teach Persian to Koch, the officer in charge of the camp's kitchen, who dreams of opening a restaurant in Persia (Iran) once the war is over. Gilles finds himself having to invent a language he doesn't know, word by word. As the unusual relationship between the two men begins to incite jealousy and suspicion, Gilles becomes acutely aware that one false move could expose his swindle.

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Genres:

Drama

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Official submission of Belarus for the 'Best International Feature Film' category of the 93rd Academy Awards in 2021, but was disqualified by the Academy, due to the majority of individuals involved in making the film not coming from Belarus

User Reviews

very moving story with exellent actors

This is a very new twist in an old genre. its a psychological thriller between two uneven characters. Lars Eidinger gives a tremendous performance that is nothing short of christoph waltz in Inglorious basterds. but he gives his character more depth and transforms him from a sadist to a man who also seeks love.

If you like this, I can also recomment Der Hauptmann with Max Hubacher turning from a refugee into a mass murderer. These two films are great exercises on the psychological mechanics of faschism.

Details

Country:

Russia Germany Belarus

Language:

German French Persian English Italian

Release Date:

24 September 2020 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Persian Lessons

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$323,595

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hype Film, LM Media, ONE TWO Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

127 min

Color:

Color