CIFF's first ever Mavericks competition drew to a close tonight, which featured 10 international film makers competing for a chance to win a $25 000 prize. Now I don't know how many of you out there have seen the Mavericks advertisements, but they strongly reiterate the notion that the Mavericks series is both groundbreaking and intense. I certainly don't disagree with this portrayal, but after all the heavy hitting advertising, director Ramtin Lavafipour's humble introduction to his film Be Calm and Count to Seven was a pleasant and heartwarming surprise. With the help of a translator, he spoke softly into the mike and simply said "I am here, because my film is here. My film is here, because you are here. I hope you enjoy it." This brief yet poignant speech was the perfect lead-in to the film I have fondly dubbed the "gentle giant" of the Mavericks.
Be Calm and Count to Seven is not a film that bursts out of the gate and sprints to the finish line. Instead the film takes it time building its plot and characters, and it is evident that a great deal of time went into the careful selection of every included frame and piece of dialogue. The film is set on a small island south of Iran, and follows a number of characters who are inextricably linked to one another. The intertwining story lines for each of the characters are both poetic and beautifully executed against the backdrop of Iran's landscape of sandy beaches and rocky terrain. Perhaps the most haunting aspect of the film for me, are scenes where a bride who was abandoned by her husband on their first night of marriage ventures off by herself and spends time tending to a petrified old tree nestled in the midst of a rocky enclave.
Be Calm and Count to Seven is a rarity in that it doesn't attempt to make some sort of profound statement about society, and succeeds because of the absence of such a grand gesture. The film is a beautiful character study that gave much of the audience (myself included) a glimpse into a breathtaking yet largely misunderstood country that has become engulfed in political turmoil over the years. Together, the combination of the film's hauntingly poetic character development and astounding cinematography make this gentle giant a viable contender for the coveted Mavericks award being presented tomorrow evening.
