Border Cafe
Length: 02:00 Type of program: World Cinema
Directed by Kambozia Partovi
Iran, 105 minutes
Reyhan is the mother of two young children, living in a small town in northern Iran near the Turkish border. When her husband dies, his brother Nasser is eager to take over the family by marrying Reyhan and raising her children in accordance with tradition.
Right after her husband�s funeral, the elder women in the family urge Reyhan to shed her black mourning robes so that she can marry Nasser and welcome him into her bed. But Reyhan respectfully rebuffs their urgings, saying she is not ready.
Though Nasser expresses a sincere sense of duty toward his brother�s widowed family, he becomes incensed when Reyhan repeatedly asserts her independence by refusing to live with him, and then resurrects her late husband�s run-down roadside cafe. When Reyhan�s culinary skills attract a loyal and growing following, including one very admiring Greek truck driver, she threatens not only Nasser�s own restaurant business but his manhood. Irate, he launches a relentless campaign to strip her of her livelihood and her independence.
Border Caf� is a complex portrait of the roles of women and men in modern Iran.
To be released on DVD by First Run Features in 2007 as Part of The Global Lens Collection, available here. To learn more about this film, visit The Global Film Initiative.
CINEMONDO
This film is part of Link TV�s new world cinema series Cinemondo, premiering entertaining and award-winning foreign films from some of the world�s most talented directors. For a full list of films, click here.
