Movie Muse by Peter Oppenheimer
It is an irony and something of an anomaly that Iran, with its strict, oppres- sive, and currently murderous, regime of leaders would continue to produce an almost unfailing pipeline of cinematic master works, characterized by a humane, open-minded and open-hearted ethos. Having been a fan and follower of Iranian cinema for decades now, I can proclaim their films most notable for setting up a conflict, and/or a quandary, and then placing the audience squarely in the shoes of each and every one of the conflicting or contesting parties (Asghar Farhadi’s Separation and The Past are two earlier shining exemplars of this genre). At one extreme, one of these victims advocates that they use the same torture methods to get their captive to confess, that were previously foisted upon them, reasoning, “They hung us upside down for 3 days to get a name. We didn’t see the light of day for 3 months.” At the other extreme one victim engages in an unimaginable act of mercy, at great personal risk, in response to a shocking devel- opment. I was rendered speechless and left to marvel how could 5 people, with such wildly contrary positions, each be right from their own perspective simulta- neously. Just a sampling of developments during this “edge of your seat” 24 hour period, include speculations on the apportioning of guilt between a rotten system and its submissive agents, a hair-raising van breakdown, internal antagonisms, suspi- cions and accusations, disclosure of past histories between them, moral and ethi- cal conundrums, declarations and protestations, oaths proclaimed and covenants forged, soiled pants, an unforeseen child birth, the intervention of two state security officers, an airing and comparing of grievances, and a startling phone call from their captive’s young daughter, to name a few. What will each of them ultimately decide to do or not do? What will be the fate of the captive, their alleged tormentor. What would you do? And what is to be made of the film’s heart-racing and mind-boggling climax and suggestive denouement?
Almost a little too “ripped from the headlines” for com- fort, comes an astonishing, thrilling and profound film from the world renown, Iranian master, Jafar Panahi, currently in exile after serving two prison terms in Iran
for defying the censors and “spreading anti-government propaganda.”
His latest film, It Was Just an Accident , which won the top prize at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival and has been short-listed for the Best International Film Oscar, was filmed entirely in secret and at great risk in Iran, as it reveals the depth of depravity of the ruling regime in dealing with dissenters (in reality, thousands have been gunned down in just the last month for protesting the regime on the streets of Iran).
Closer to home, also in real life, people are also being snatched (without charge or legal rights) off the streets of US Cities and gunned down by masked, unaccount- able and militarized governmental agents deployed to strike fear into the hearts of non-citizens and citizens alike. The question raised and dramatically explored in It Was Just an Accident is what, on a practical level, does justice look like when it is called to respond to the most heinous injustice. Given the near universal adherence to a system of retributive justice (“Retribution: punishment inflicted on someone as vengeance for a wrong or criminal act”), the conventional criteria is something along the lines of “an eye for an eye” which, as per the quote most often attributed to Mahatma Gandhi, “leaves the whole world blind.” It Was Just an Accident is a searing investigation into the heart of morality and the meaning of justice. In It Was Just an Accident a number of former victims of torture who believe they may have stumbled upon their former tormentor, are holding him captive, and spend the better part of 24 hours debating what to do with him. In the pro- cess, the common, nearly universal, urge for violent vengeance is on display, as are the limitations of violence, as well as the case for non-violence and the limitations of non-violence too. At the center of this extraordinary, breathtakingly suspenseful drama are 5 richly drawn characters, among whom are two men and two women, each of whom were formerly political prisoners abused by the Iranian regime, each of whom has their own wounds and degree of revenge-lust threatening to engulf them in a new PTSD-induced quagmire, plus the fiancé of the younger of the two women (their wedding is scheduled for the very next day).
There are also metaphysical questions raised and left unanswered by the accident for which the film is titled and which occurs at the opening of the film, initiat- ing the entire sequence of events breathlessly narrated in the nearly two hours that follow. Is there such a thing as an accident, or do things happen according to some hidden plan? Many scientists and evolution theorists conjecture that life itself is an accident or a random combination of natural forces, with neither plan nor purpose. What do you think? Ultimately, Jafar Panahi’s It Was Just an Accident t is a remarkable, moral thriller for our time and a model of humane and courageous filmmaking, extremely deserving of whatever accolades it can garner. It Was Just an Accident is currently available to rent for streaming online from Amazon Prime and Apple TV (not as a part of their monthly subscription service).
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