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Gabil returns home to the humble family farmstead, surrounded by an orchard of venerable pomegranate trees; since his sudden departure twelve years ago. A to Z of #EFA2018 Feature Film Selection: POMEGRANATE ORCHARD (NAR BAĞI) by Ilgar Najaf bit.ly/EFA2018Pomegra…
Ilqar Najaf
  • nar. 1975
    Arménie, Sovětský svaz

Biografie

Ilgar Najaf byl po etnickém konfliktu v roce 1988 s celou rodinou vyhnán z Arménie, ve třinácti letech se tak stal uprchlíkem.

V letech 1993–97 studoval obor filmové a televizní režie na Ázerbájdžánské státní umělecké univerzitě. Zpočátku točil dokumenty, jmenujme např. Kölgəsiz komalar (2000) či Bir qoca var… (2002), a krátké filmy (Teatral həyat, 2009, Stříbrný Remi z WorldFest Houston). V roce 2004 založil produkční studio Buta Film.

Tradiční způsob života na venkově nepoznamenaném shonem moderní doby se rozhodl tematizovat již ve svém celovečerním hraném debutu Buta (2011), příběhu sedmiletého chlapce žijícího s babičkou v horské vesnici. Film, který se stal ázerbájdžánským kandidátem na Oscara, obdržel ceny na několika přehlídkách, jmenujme WorldFest Houston a MFF Isfahan.

MFF Karlovy Vary

CLick for More : https://www.csfd.cz/tvurce/78942-ilgar-najaf/galerie/?type=actions

synopsis

Gabil returns home to the humble family farmstead, surrounded by an orchard of venerable pomegranate trees; since his sudden departure twelve years ago he was never once in contact. However, the deep emotional scars he left behind cannot be erased from one day to the next. A private drama set in a picturesque landscape which tells of wrongdoings simmering below the surface of seeming innocence.

international title: Pomegranate Orchard
original title: Nar baği
country: Azerbaijan
year: 2017
genre: fiction
directed by: Ilgar Najaf
film run: 90′
screenplay: Asif Rustamov, Ilgar Najaf, Roelof Yan
cast: Ilahe Hasanova, Semimi Farhad, Gurban Ismayilov, Hesen Aghayev
cinematography by: Ayhan Salar
film editing: Elmir Hasanov
music: Firuddin Allahverdi
producer: Mushfug Hatamov, Ilgar Najaf
production: Azerbaijanfilm (AZ), Buta Film (AZ)

Source: https://cineuropa.org/film/358751/

 

Dir. Ilgar Najaf.  Azerbaijan. 2017. 90 mins

An interpretation of Chekov’s The Cherry Orchard, Ilgar Najaf’s Pomegranate Orchard (Nar baği) is a measured familial drama played out against the picturesque backdrop of the titular plantation. As a depiction of a time that has passed amidst the onslaught of modernity, it is often calm and quiet whilst hiding a maelstrom of emotions below the surface. Opening the East of the West Competition at Karlovy Vary 2017 gives the film a comparatively high profile which should net a healthy amount of interest on the festival circuit – especially considering the relative paucity of films originating from Azerbaijan. Its languid pace might not play well to more general audiences and makes arthouse distribution a hard reach, however.

Performances are understated throughout with recriminations and guilt all simmering below the surface of the characters

Despite suffering from the ravages of old age, Shamil (Gurban Ismayilov) still attends to the family pomegranate orchard helped by his daughter-in-law Sara (Ilahe Hasanova) and her young boy Jalal (Hesen Aghayev). As they contemplate whether they’ll be able to carry on managing, their lives are turned upside by the reappearance of Gabil (Semimi Farhad), Shamil’s son and the father of Jalal. Having fled the village 12 years before after an incident with his brother, Gabil has returned to reveal he has a comfortable life in Russia and wants his family back. But the scars of the past run deep. Will he find any forgiveness?

If Chekov’s original sentiments were somewhat ambivalent about social upheaval – he was more critical about those who could not accept or adapt to change – Najaf’s film finds the modern world a corrupt place, encroaching on the idyll of rural life. Ahan Sylar’s cinematography treats the family orchard with reverence, the camera swooping over the land and giving it a bucolic grace and beauty.

Gabil’s sudden presence becomes a disruption of this world, the constant ringing of his mobile phone bringing an unwelcome blast of modernity into the peace. It’s only when he reintegrates with his surroundings – such as when he helps to bring the harvest in – that a possibility of balance and happiness becomes apparent. The final 20 minutes of the film show how the reality of 21st century existence means that the life lived by Shamil and his family is a near impossibility, however.

Performances are understated throughout with recriminations and guilt all simmering below the surface of the characters. There is certainly a tangible sexual tension between Gabil and Sara, including a ‘cup massage’ scene that plays with the boundaries between bland domesticity and carnal longing. This adds some passion and offers a relief to the more staid and measured moments that make up the majority of the film.

This sedate nature is part of Pomegranate Orchard’s charm, a welcome respite from the chaos of the everyday. The fact that the final 20 minutes take such a dark turn gives the film a tone of bitterness as it turns into an indictment of the lapsed morality of a modern culture.

Production company/international sales: Buta Film/[email protected]

Producers: Mushfig Hatamov, Ilgar Najaf

Screenplay:  Asif Rustamov, Ilgar Najaf, Roelof Yan Minneboo

Cinematography:  Ayhan Salar

Editor:   Elmir Hasanov

Production Design: Rafig Nasirov

Music: Firuddin Allahverdi

Main cast:  Ilahe Hasanova, Semimi Farhad, Gurban Ismayilov, Hesen Aghayev

Source: https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/pomegranate-orchard-karlovy-vary-review/5119589.article

After the show in Minsk “Pomegranate Garden” from the main competition of the Listapad’s feature films program took one of the leading positions in the viewer rating. Having watched the premiere, the audience not only actively voted, but also participated in the discussion of the film with producer Ali Isa Jabbarov, they asked questions and joked. As it turned out, the similarity with Chekhov’s “Cherry Orchard” is not the only highlight of the film.

ГС-сл-1.jpg

A shot from the film “Pomegranate garden”

We can not understand a lot from the description of Ilgar Najaf’s picture: it echoes by its name and plot with the famous work of Russian classics, but this is just a canvas, interweaved with bright visual symbols and unique Azerbaijanian meanings.

“At first Ilgar Najaf wrote a 5-page synopsis. When he began working on the script, he saw the Chekhov’s trace in the film becoming more and more vivid. This film is not an adaptation of the “Cherry Orchard”, it’s the work inspired by the “Cherry Orchard”, – describes the details of the creative process Ali Isa Jabbarov.

A bright detailed picture, warm colours and a wide frame with several focuses – that’s what immediately catches the eye of an attentive viewer. The mind and senses respond to the deep private and social drama, unfolding in these scenes.

Shamil is an old owner of the garden, similar to Chekhov’s landlord, who lives and blossoms together with the sprigs of his trees. These trees symbolize his family and his roots. One of his sons was killed, the second one disappeared 12 years ago, having left his wife Sarah with a small baby named Jalal. Neighbors are jealous of Shamil and dream of buying his garden to destroy it and build plants in its place. Sarah brings up her son alone and suddenly finds out that he does not distinguish the red colour: he sees the fruits of pomegranate jet black, while they are the pride of their family and their nation. Time goes by, the 12-year-old Jalal is getting smart beyond his years. Their life goes on as usual, until one day everything in this small family changes, because the person, who is not bemoaned any more, suddenly resurrects – Jamal’s father Gabil returns after having worked abroad.

Everybody is confused, while Gabil tries to carry himself free and easy. “Where is the old road to the garden?” – “Much has changed,” the father answers him grimly. “All that I have are these trees,” – says Shamil to his son. It hurts Gabil, because after the death of his brother the father teared him away, and that changed him a lot. “There has never been a place for me in this house,” Gabil drops. “We all are one family, says Shamil. He is angry with Gabil, but he is ready to forgive him. The problem is that Gabil is not a person he claims to be.

06.11.2017_КТ Центральный_Гранатовый сад_от Наташи Кирилко_14.JPG

Foto by Natalya Kirilko

Some people will see the film conflict in a family misunderstanding, others will see it in the complexities of labor migration, and another group of people – in the eternal opposition of capitalism to traditional values.

Igor Sukmanov, feature film program director, notes: “This is not only poetic, but also very social cinema. The image of a breadwinner in the Transcaucasian culture is firm and worthful. The father is like a stone wall, behind which every member of a family can hide. But in this film everything is vice versa.”

Despite the desire of the co-producers to show the realities of their culture embellished, the authors of the picture went their own way: “Ilgar Najaf is a realist, therefore he would not make a fully poetic film. That is clear from his directing style,” said Ali Issa Jabbarov.

However, the creators of the film still tried to show the traditions of their culture in the film.

Ali Isa Jabbarov shared: “The main theme of most Azerbaijani films is family. The peculiarity of our society lies in family values. There are also negative aspects in it: clan and tribal thinking, but when people are close to each other, it helps to fight against dictate of capitalism and financial dependence.” In the film, family members’ values were different – that is the base of drama in the “Pomegranate Garden”.

Igor Sukmanov mentions that Chekhov often referred to the theme of the influence of capitalism on human souls. This is another elegant Chekhovian parallel in the picture.

The viewers are also interested in more earth-bound questions: how big is the garden shown in the film, are such gardens profound in Azerbaijan? Ali Isa Jabbarov answers: “Pomegranate economy dictates the lifestyle of those who live there and are engaged in it. In addition to the fact that pomegranate is delicious and healthy, it also has a mystical feature, his own aura: however, in this film pomegranate acts not so much as a symbol – it is more interesting as a visual object.”

06.11.2017_КТ Центральный_Гранатовый сад_от Наташи Кирилко_5.JPG

Foto by Natalya Kirilko

In the final scene, pomegranate trees bloom again outside the window, but Jamal sees them black. “Does it mean there is no hope?” – people ask Ali Isa from the hall.

“You see, the task of such a movie is to create a feeling of reality with help of shock. There is no hope, but you see that there are no good or bad characters,” Jabbarov explains.

Igor Sukmanov adds: “It seems to me that black petals are seen not only by a child, who does not distinguish red and black colours, but we ourselves begin to see this wormhole in beauty. And this situation appeals to us: what can we do to return the world its natural colours? In my opinion this picture was created to make this world better.”

At the end of the presentation Ali Isa Jabbarov presented Igor Sukmanov a pomegranate – one of those grown at the sunny plantations of Azerbaijani province. And it’s not just a gift, it’s also a symbol: the cinema, including Azerbaijani cinema, lives and sparkles with different colours – you just have to learn how to see them.

Text by Alina Buraya

Source: http://listapad.com/en/news/2017/11/eta-kartina-byla-sozdana-dlya-togo-chtoby-oblagorodit-etot-mir-v-minske-predstavili-granatovyy-sad-i/