In the words of the filmmaker, “Los versos del olvido is about the ethical demand to remember the past and resist the violence of forgetting”. It provides a powerful metaphor for the politics of memory, and offers a poetic homage to those who fight for justice for the unknown.
The roots of the filmmaker and the story are in Iran, but forced to move to a South American setting for its production, this richly detailed film takes on even more universal meaning. An elderly caretaker of a remote morgue possesses an impeccable memory for everything but names. He passes his days showing corpses to those searching for their lost ones. When protest in a nearby city breaks out and the militia covertly raid the morgue to hide civilian casualties, he discovers the body of an unknown young woman. Evoking memories of personal loss, he embarks on a magical odyssey to give her a proper burial.
Film details
Productielanden
Chile, France, Germany, Netherlands
Jaar
2017
Festivaleditie
IFFR 2018
Lengte
92'
Medium/Formaat
DCP
Taal
Spanish
Première status
None
Director
Alireza Khatami
Producer
Dominique Welinski, Fabian Massah, Leontine Petit, Joost de Vries, Giancarlo Nasi / Don Quijote Films
Screenplay
Alireza Khatami
Principal cast
Amparo Noguera, Juan Margallo, Manuel Moron, Itziar Aizpuru, Tomas Del Estal, Julio Jung, Gonzalo Robles
Production company
House on Fire, Endorphine Production, Lemming Film, Don Quijote Films