Abbas Kiarostami: The Fragility of Life

11/5/11 to 11/20/11

We are pleased to present the "earthquake trilogy," of Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami, acknowledged as one of the greatest filmmakers in contemporary cinema. While critics and programmers have dubbed three of these works-Where Is the Friend's Home, And Life Goes On..., and Through the Olive Trees-the “Koker Trilogy,” Kiarostami himself believes that it is the latter two, combined with his later film Taste of Cherry, that comprise a trilogy, one investigating the beauty, and fragility, of life.

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Past Films

  • Taste of Cherry

    • Sunday, November 20 4:30 pm

    Abbas Kiarostami (Iran, 1997). This mystery of a man seemingly in his prime who searches the dusty hills of rural Iran for someone to help him commit suicide won the Palme d'Or at Cannes in 1997. "A masterpiece" (The Nation). (99 mins)

  • Through the Olive Trees

    • Saturday, November 19 6 pm

    Abbas Kiarostami (Iran, 1994). The Koker trilogy's last film, "which follows the misadventures of a crew shooting a film in rural Iran, at first seems to be a joke about the way life resists being turned into a movie, but it becomes a better joke about a movie that transforms life" (New Yorker). (108 mins)

  • And Life Goes On . . .

    • Sunday, November 13 3:00 pm

    Abbas Kiarostami (Iran, 1992). A television crew arrives at a remote Kurdish village to await a mourning ritual. While they wait for death, life happens. "A stunningly lyrical and eloquent exploration of both rural village life and the nature of artistic responsibility" (N.Y. Times). Also playing on Saturday / 11.12.11. (91 mins)

  • And Life Goes On . . .

    • Saturday, November 12 6 pm

    Abbas Kiarostami (Iran, 1992). A television crew arrives at a remote Kurdish village to await a mourning ritual. While they wait for death, life happens. "A stunningly lyrical and eloquent exploration of both rural village life and the nature of artistic responsibility" (N.Y. Times). Repeated on Sunday / 11.13.11. (91 mins)

  • Where Is the Friend's Home?

    • Sunday, November 6 5:00 pm

    Abbas Kiarostami (Iran, 1987). This beautiful picture of the life of a child in a northern Iranian village begins Kiarostami's Koker trilogy, and introduced Kiarostami's singular talents to a broader audience. Also playing on Saturday / 11.05.11. (87 min)

  • Where Is the Friend's Home?

    • Saturday, November 5 6 pm

    Abbas Kiarostami (Iran, 1987). This beautiful picture of the life of a child in a northern Iranian village begins Kiarostami's Koker trilogy, and introduced Kiarostami's singular talents to a broader audience. Repeated on Sunday / 11.06.11. (87 mins)