The Seed of the Sacred Fig

Synopsis

Iman, an ambitious family man, receives an appointment to become an investigating judge in Iran’s Revolutionary Court. Such a professional step means major advancement for him, his wife, and his two independently minded teenage daughters. His rise is complicated, though, when nationwide student-fueled protests against the government cause violent unrest in the streets, forcing Iman to work overtime. When his handgun mysteriously goes missing, his nerves are strained to the breaking point.

Equal parts tension-fueled domestic drama and paranoid political thriller, the film offers an excoriating examination of an oppressive, patriarchal society about to reach a tipping point. Currently living in exile to avoid an eight-year prison sentence for his films’ criticism of Iran’s hardline conservative government, veteran auteur Mohammad Rasoulof (There Is No Evil, 2020) returns to the Festival with this exhilarating, timely work that rises to the urgency of the moment.