MIFF 2025 Film Review - It Was Just an Accident
Images courtesy of Common State.
When Vahid (Vahid Mobasser) hears a squeaking prosthetic leg dragging across the concrete of his shop, he is thrust back into the trauma of his imprisonment during the Iranian war. Vahid jumps into action, racing after the man with the prosthetic leg (Ebrahim Azizi), and shoving him into the back of his van. Consumed with rage, Vahid drives the man out into the desert and begins to bury him alive. But when the man protests, saying that he never worked in the prison, Vahid is confronted with doubt that this man is the same man that kept him imprisoned and tortured for years. Setting out to find other ex-prisoners who can help confirm the man’s identity, Vahid collects a wedding photographer (Maryam Afshari), a soon-to-be bride and groom (Hadid Pakbaten and Majid Panahi), and a ruthless and angry labourer Hamid (Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr).
What ensues is a masterfully crafted ensemble film. Panahi is extremely skilled at balancing tension and thrills with blunt comedy, and the film is a tragic blast. The cast’s chemistry is potent, and it's filled with hilarious blasts of absurdity. Panahi doesn’t fail to remind the audience of the seriousness of the trauma, though, and you’ll be laughing one moment and completely crushed in the next. Its shots and scenes are long and deliciously drawn out, reminiscent of theatre. The cast of (mostly non-actors) are fantastic, and the performances speak for themselves. The ending of this film is the strongest finale of any screen media that has come out this year, and will keep you thinking for weeks afterwards.
It Was Just An Accident directly draws upon Panahi’s own experiences being imprisoned for his crimes against the regime. It’s his first film since the restrictions placed upon his filmmaking were lifted, and he’s able to play with a lot more in this feature than in his recent productions, like This is Not a Film(2011). It’s a very angry production, and you can feel Panahi’s opinions seeping through. Sometimes this causes the film to take unnecessary detours, and it has confusing moments, but it swings so big that its highs are much more memorable than its lows.
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It Was Just an Accident screened as part of the 2025 Melbourne International Film Festival. For more info, click here.