The Apple

media release: Iran | 1998 | 35mm | 86 min. | Farsi with English subtitles

Director: Samira Makhmalbaf

Cast: Massoumeh Naderi, Zahra Naderi, Ghorban Ali Naderi

Twelve-year-old twins Massoumeh and Zahra have been imprisoned by their parents in their home in Tehran for years, and a social worker pushes for their freedom after neighbors bring attention to the girls’ plight. Based on a true story and with the actual family playing themselves, The Apple is a sensitive yet probing reenactment of the events, boldly mixing documentary and drama. Samira Makhmalbaf, the daughter of renowned Iranian filmmaker Mohsen Makhmalbaf, directed the film when she was just 17. “Rarely have the lines between documentary and fiction film been blurred with such formal audacity or righteousness” (Manohla Dargis). Preceded by a selection of 35mm Wisconsin Film Festival trailers. Prints courtesy Wisconsin Center for Film & Theater Research.

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