Khane-ye doust kojast?
Iran,
1987, 90 min
Shown in 1993 / 2000
CREDITS
OTHER
COMMENTS
Abbas Kiarostami appeared in person as the recipient of the Akira Kurosawa Award in 2000.Combining a moral lesson with a lyrical appreciation for landscape, Where Is the Friend’s Home? established Kiarostami’s reputation abroad. Perhaps more significantly, fate and Mother Nature made it the first part of a loosely linked trilogy comprising And Life Goes On... and Through the Olive Trees. Ahmad and Mohammad share a desk at a village school in northern Iran. Mohammad’s careless attitude toward his homework has drawn reprimands from their stern teacher. When Ahmad prepares to do his assignment, he is aghast to find that he accidentally picked up Mohammad’s notebook. Fearing that his friend will be expelled if he cannot submit his lesson the next day, Ahmad defies his parents and sets out to find his friend’s home in the neighboring village. Although he cannot locate his friend, Ahmad ultimately discovers the meaning of friendship and responsibility. Unable to return the notebook, he devises another solution to the dilemma. Three years after the film was made, a massive earthquake tragically destroyed most of the village where the film is set; Kiarostami’s return to the town in search of the film’s two child actors is the focus of the second part of his earthquake trilogy, And Life Goes On... .
—Alissa Simon