Taste of Cherry (1997)
طعم گيلاس
Film details
Drama · Abbas Kiarostami · 1h 38min
Synopsis
A middle-aged Tehranian man, Mr. Badii is intent on killing himself and seeks someone to bury him after his demise. Driving around the city, the seemingly well-to-do Badii meets with numerous people, including a Muslim student, asking them to take on the job, but initially he has little luck. Eventually, Badii finds a man who is up for the task because he needs the money, but his new associate soon tries to talk him out of committing suicide.
Verdict
Existential meditation on suicide. Arthouse cinema for adult and educated audiences.
In-depth analysis
Taste of Cherry is a work by the Iranian master Abbas Kiarostami that rigorously poses one of the most difficult questions: what gives meaning to life when all seems lost. The protagonist drives through Tehran, seeking someone to assist him with his suicide, and along this journey, he encounters voices that offer him reasons to continue. The film's key lies in its deliberate ambiguity: Kiarostami neither preaches nor judges, but rather accompanies. The taxidermist who speaks to him of the taste of cherries as a metaphor for everyday beauty does not convince with theological arguments, but with the sensory memory of what makes life worthwhile. The ending, characteristically open, leaves the viewer with the responsibility of drawing their own conclusions. It is not a film that glorifies suicide nor one that easily condemns it — it is a spiritual drama that requires intellectual and emotional maturity. For parents: not recommended for minors. If viewed as a family with older children, it demands subsequent conversation about hope and the Christian meaning of suffering.