The Salesman (2016)
★★★½ — The Salesman (2016)
Asghar Farhadi made The Salesman in 2016, arriving hot off the international success of A Separation (2011) and The Past (2013), by which point he had established himself as one of the most respected filmmakers working in world cinema. A French co-production with ARTE France Cinéma among the backers, the film was shot in Tehran and draws its title (and a recurring thread) from Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, which the lead characters are staging in a local theatre. The film won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2017, though Farhadi boycotted the ceremony in protest at the travel ban imposed by the Trump administration on Iranian nationals, a gesture that brought the film considerable additional attention in the press.
A-Z World Movie Tour Qatar Asghar Farhadi’s The Salesman is tense, smart, and quietly devastating, just like A Separation, which I absolutely loved. So I went in with high hopes, and while it didn’t quite reach those heights, it’s still a gripping drama that pulls you in with its moral complexity and slow-burning anger. The story of a couple dealing with trauma after an attack in their home spirals into something much bigger, about guilt, revenge, and how pride can destroy even the closest relationships. It’s classic Farhadi. Real people, impossible choices, no easy answers. That said, I couldn’t help but feel the focus shifted too much onto the husband, Emad, while Rana, the wife, gets pushed into the background just when her perspective matters most. She’s clearly shaken, but we don’t get to see enough of her inner world. Her fear, her silence, what she wants. Instead, Emad’s need for justice (or is it pride?) takes over, and the film starts to feel more like his journey than theirs. It’s a small shift, but it makes a difference. The pacing is also tough at times, very slow, with scenes that could’ve been tighter. It’s maybe 20 to 30 minutes too long without adding much. But even with that, the tension never fully drops, and the final moments are quietly powerful. Not as sharp as A Separation, but still a strong, thoughtful film.
Rating: ★★★½ | Year: 2016 | Watched: 2025-08-25
Where to watch (UK)
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Related on Movies With Macca
More from Asghar Farhadi: A Separation (2011)
More from Iran: The House Is Black (1963) · A Separation (2011) · A Few Cubic Meters of Love (2014)
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