TEHRAN – In honor of the renowned Iranian filmmaker Bahram Beyzai, who passed away last year, the 43rd Munich International Film Festival will present the German premiere of the restored version of “Bashu, the Little Stranger”.
The 1989 Iranian drama will be shown out of competition in the CineKindl section of the festival, which is to be held from June 26 to July 5 in Munich, Germany, ISNA reported.
As an anti-war masterpiece, “Bashu, the Little Stranger” has a simple story. It depicts the story of Bashu, a southern Iranian boy, who, after losing his family during the Iran-Iraq war, runs away in search of refuge and is taken in by Naii, a woman living with her two young children in a village in the northern part of the country.
Despite their linguistic, ethnic, and racial differences, neighbors’ gossip, and the economic challenge of feeding a new family member, Naii accepts Bashu and prepares to convince her disabled husband when he arrives home from a work-related trip.
The touching, acclaimed drama, however, carries subtle undertones about human emotions like love, acceptance, loneliness, and unfamiliarity.
In 1999, “Bashu, the Little Stranger” was voted the best Iranian movie of all time by a poll of 150 movie experts.
Bahram Beyzai was an Iranian filmmaker, poet, playwright, and theater director. After making a name for himself as a playwright in the 1960s, he turned to directing films in the 1970s and is considered a pioneer of the Iranian New Wave.
To this day, his works are regarded by critics as some of the best Iranian films of all time. In 2010, he became a professor at Stanford University. He died in December 2025 on his 87th birthday.
His debut feature, “Downpour,” made in 1972, is regarded as one of the most successful Iranian films ever made.
His other films include “Stranger and the Fog” (1974), “Crow” (1976), “Ballad of Tara” (1979), “Maybe Another Time” (1988), “Travelers” (1992), “Killing Mad Dogs” (2001), and “When We Are All Asleep” (2009).
Beyzai’s stories, plays, and screenplays, as well as his studies in various fields, have been published in over 70 books. Some of his plays have been translated into several languages and shown in many countries.
The Munich International Film Festival is the largest summer film festival in Germany and second in size and importance to the Berlinale. It has been held annually since 1983 and takes place in late June or early July. It presents feature films and feature-length documentaries.
The festival has identified emerging young filmmakers known for their talent and innovation, a practice that remains ongoing. With the exception of retrospectives, tributes, and homages, all of the films screened are German, European, and world premieres.
SS/SAB
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: tehrantimes.com
