From Tehran to Heaven

Abolfazl Saffary : 2013
Az Tehran ta behesht

Ghazal and her husband Farhad, who works in a laboratory, have been having their disagreements lately. She tells him she is pregnant, but instead of welcoming the news, he observes that it is a sin to bring a child into this world. When Ghazal comes home after having an ultrasound scan, she finds that her apartment has been ransacked and Farhad has disappeared. There is a note on the fridge with a cryptic message that he has left for a place called Heaven. Ghazal is abducted and threatened. Her abductors want to know where Farhad is hiding. Strange things are happening. She discovers that Farhad's lab had been conducting dangerous experiments and that he absconded with the results. Having survived rape and physical abuse, she knows she has to find her husband as quickly as possible. In a nightmarish pursuit from a surreal Tehran deep into the desert, and imprisoned in what seems to be a feverish dream, Ghazal not only tries to survive herself – the life of her unborn child is also at risk in this dystopian society. Abolfazl Saffary's feature, an apocalyptic vision of Iran, premiered at Montréal World Film Festival 2013.