Four new potential blockbusters will hit the cinema screens from Wednesday, May 10.
Cinema experienced a booming box-office in the first 50 days of the Persian New Year (started March 21). The six movies screened during this period have grossed over $11.5 million while one of them, ‘Patrol 2’ has broken the record of Iran’s all-time best-seller, taking in more than $4.8 million so far.
Now, ‘The Whale 2: Selection-e Roya’ directed by Saman Moqadam, ‘My Brother Khosrow’ by Ehsan Biglari, ‘Villa Residents’ by Monir Qeidi and ‘Chaos’ by Kazem Rastgoftar are the films, made in various genres and casting popular actors, that are likely to appeal to the majority of film fans with various tastes, drawing them to cinema halls, and might even break the best-selling film record once again this year, Honaronline reported
‘The Whale 2’ is a sequel to Moqadam’s ‘The Whale’, a comedy which was released in 2015 and became the year’s second best-seller with a total sale of $2 million. It chronicled the story of Arjang (Reza Attaran) who has been in love with Roya (Mahnaz Afshar) for a long time but due to different problems cannot marry her until the age of 50.
Depicting four decades of Iran with references to important social and political events in a humorous way and nostalgic songs, the comedy saw a huge reception by the public, encouraging the director to make a sequel.
Vishka Asayesh, Reza Naji and Ali Qorbanzadeh from the first film have roles in the sequel and Hesam Navab-Safavi, Sirous Gorjestani, Shahla Riahi, Katayoun Amir-Ebrahimi, Mohsen Qazi-Moradi and Asadollah Yekta are new in the cast.
According to speculations in the cinema society, many believe that ‘The Whale 2’ can do better than ‘Patrol 2’ at the box-office. Whether it can break the record or not, it is almost certain that it will end up in the annual top-ten list of highest-grossing films.
Hosseini Plays a Bipolar Disorder Patient
‘My Brother Khosrow’ is Biglari’s debut feature film which was first shown at the 34th Fajr Film Festival and had a good reception by both critics and viewers who especially praised the impressive performance of the globally-renowned actor Shahab Hosseini in the lead role.
The drama tells the story of Khosrow (played by Hosseini), a man suffering from bipolar disorder, who has to live at his brother’s home for a while. The happenings during his stay there change the course of Khosrow’s life.
One of the most popular actors among Iranian film fans, Hosseini won the prize for the best actor in Cannes Film Festival for Asghar Farhadi’s ‘The Salesman’ last May. In Farhadi’s film, he played the role of a logical man trying to control his anger, but in Biglari’s work, he assumes an aggressive character.
Nasser Hashemi, Hengameh Qaziani and Bita Farrahi are also in the cast.
War From a Feminine Perspective
Qeidi’s first feature film ‘Villa Residents’ debuted at the 35th Fajr Film Festival in February, and became one of the surprises of the festival, promising the emergence of a talented filmmaker.
The war/ drama movie collected rave reviews from critics, was welcomed by the public as well and won three awards in the end including the best supporting actress award for the veteran actress Soraya Qasemi.
The events of the film occur in 1986 during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war and the story is narrated from a female point of view.
Tannaz Tabatabaei, Soraya Qasemi, Parinaz Izadyar, Giti Qasemi and Saber Abar have performed in the film.
Narration of Historical Events
‘Chaos’ is the new work of Kazem Rastgoftar who has made six films so far, all among the bestsellers of the year they were screened in.
Centering on a young singer called ‘Ashoob’ (literally meaning chaos), the movie narrates the real historical incidents of Tehran during the 1940s.
A mix of romance, drama, comedy and musical, the film has over 20 well-known actors in the cast including Kourosh Tahami, Leila Otadi, Yekta Naser, Farhad Ayish, Atila Pesyani, Homayoun Ershadi, Mohammadreza Hedayati, Nader Soleimani, Dariush Farhang and Shohreh Lorestani, among others.
