Condensing the confusion of life into an evening of episodic antics might be a familiar filmic technique; however in the right hands, it’s an approach that needn’t smack of formula. Martin Scorsese, John Landis and Jim Jarmusch are among those who have sent characters careening through the course of a single night’s worth of activities, entertaining, intriguing and astute as their efforts in After Hours, Into the Night and Night on Earth proved — and now Iranian writer/director Ali Ahmadzade joins their ranks with his off kilter effort.
Atomic Heart, Ahmadzade’s second feature after Kami’s Party, is a movie of darkness laced with splashes of bright yet controlled colour, of conversational and directional meandering punctuated by topical subjects and serious concerns, and of a drive around Tehran interrupted by a series of interlopers. It presents a microcosm of its nation of origin and the youth who inhabit it, as well as a dreamlike trip through it. It peppers the commonplace with the unusual, whether in brightly coloured tresses peeking out from beneath a headscarf, a discussion that breaks into a sing-along, numerous comical pop culture references, or a passenger of mysterious origins.
As the film’s protagonists, friends and housemates Arineh (Taraneh Alidoosti, The Wedlock) and Nobahar (Pegah Ahangarani, Closer) navigate this shifting terrain, their introduction initially appearing ordinary before revealing further texture and flavour — just like their journey to come. When they first grace the feature’s frames, the former stands in front of an elevator and the latter sits in a bathroom. Both wait patiently, until Arineh repeatedly slides her hand between the door and the wall as the lift starts to close, and Nobahar starts to tap her feet in time with music.
The melodic refrain rises, their behaviour begins to favour the playful, and their state is revealed as one of intoxication as they leave a party to drive home. Again, a standard jaunt becomes something more when they interact with three men: their sunglass-wearing friend Kami (Mehrdad Sedighiyan, The Rule of Accident), who isn’t short of opinions on everything from the history of toilets to moving Australia; a police officer attending the scene of an accident caused by driving the wrong way down one-way streets; and a bystander (Mohammad Reza Golzar, I Want to Dance) who offers assistance, then requests that the pair help him collect an acquaintance in return.
A melange of elements is the end result, as Atomic Heart switches from peppy and piercing to surreal and slippery. Thankfully, the film charms as it mirrors its ideas in its approach, demonstrating the importance of transformation as much as the concept of peering beyond seeming normality. In the story, the intricacies of a close friendship morph into an observation of Iranian society — as set in 2009, when then-President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad rolled out a subsidy reform plan that paid residents $15 monthly — before leaping into fantastical, pseudo-thriller territory. In execution, intimate close-ups are typically broadened only as far as the confines of the car, with glimpses outside through windows and on brief stops creating the same startling reaction as the movie’s many jump cuts.
Indeed, Atomic Heart veers, stops and starts across its careening voyage — in tone and content, and all over the roads — yet never loses its path or its point. Ahmadzade’s confident handling offers an overall sense of cohesion, even with such eclectic parts in play; however Alidoosti and Ahangarani prove the film’s commanding constants. Rarely seen far apart, they anchor the surrounding chaos with glances shared and sent out into the night, in physicality as subtle as it is expressive, and in ensuring the feature’s dense dialogue rings equally amusing, insightful and accurate. They provide the feature with two figures audiences want to tag along with as they spend an evening riding through political troubles, personal dynamics and the possibilities of parallel universes.
Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5
Atomic Heart (Madar-e ghalb atomi)
Director: Ali Ahmadzade
Iran, 2014, 97 mins
Brisbane Asia Pacific Film Festival
brisbaneasiapacificfilmfestival.com
19 – 29 November
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