Introduction

After years of planning what promises to be a momentous change, the day has finally come for a young couple to embark on a new life studying abroad. But just as they are preparing to set off on this journey of hope and excitement, something unexpected happens. While entertaining guests who are loath to see them go, the couple has no choice but to deal directly with the crisis. An ingeniously conceived series of events unfolds in the aftermath of the incident and the tension never lets up. The screenplay was clearly influenced by the director Asghar Farhadi, best known for A Separation (2011), and Peyman Maadi, the award-winning star of that film, also appears in Melbourne. So well-crafted that it is easy to forget that all of the action takes place in the confines of a house, this directorial debut by Nima Javidi testifies to the great promise of Iranian film.