Lakposhtha parvaz mikonand (2004)

Director:

Bahman Ghobadi

Writer:

Bahman Ghobadi (writer)

Release Date:

17 February 2005 (Netherlands)

Genre:

Drama | War

Plot:

Near the Iraqi-Turkish border on the eve of an American invasion, refugee children like 13-year-old Kak (Ebrahim), gauge and await their fate.

Plot Keywords:

Border | Landmine | Refugee | Kurdistan | Kurdish

Awards:

15 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Soran Ebrahim	...	Satellite
Avaz Latif	...	Agrin
Saddam Hossein Feysal	...	Pashow
Hiresh Feysal Rahman	...	Hengov
Abdol Rahman Karim	...	Riga
Ajil Zibari	...	Shirkooh

Directed by
Bahman Ghobadi

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Bahman Ghobadi		writer

Produced by
Babak Amini	....	producer
Hamid Karim Batin Ghobadi	....	producer
Hamid Ghavami	....	producer
Abbas Ghazali	....	executive producer
Bahman Ghobadi	....	producer

Original Music by
Hossein Alizadeh

Cinematography by
Shahriar Assadi

Film Editing by
Mostafa Kherghehpoosh
Haydeh Safi-Yari

Production Design by
Bahman Ghobadi

Production Management
Sheyk Mohammad	....	production manager
Sadegh Sourchi	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jalal Saed Panah	....	assistant director
Shah Hosseinie Shahram	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Bahman Ardalan	....	sound

Thanks
Amin Mahdavi	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• Mij Film Co.
• Bac Films

Distributors

• A-Film Distribution (2005) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Alta Films (2005) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Bac Films (2005) (France) (theatrical)
• Cinéart (2005) (Belgium) (theatrical)
• Frenetic Films (2005) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• ICA (2005) (UK) (theatrical)
• IFC Films (2005) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Istituto Luce (2005) (Italy) (theatrical)
• Mitosfilm (2005) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Office Sanmarusan Inc. (2005) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Palace Films (2005) (Australia) (theatrical)
• Primer Plano Film Group (2006) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Seville Pictures (2005) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Four Films (2006) (Chile) (all media)
• Transeuropa Video Entertainment (TVE) (2006) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Transeuropa Video Entertainment (TVE) (2006) (Argentina) (VHS)

Also Known As:

Les tortues volent aussi (France) (DVD title)
Turtles Can Fly (International: English title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for violence, disturbing images and mature thematic material, all involving children.

Runtime:

98 min | 95 min | Argentina:97 min (Mar del Plata Film Festival) | Turkey:92 min (TV version)

Country:

Iran | France | Iraq

Language:

Kurdish

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Taiwan:R-12 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Zurich) | Singapore:PG | Germany:12 | Portugal:M/16 | South Korea:15 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Finland:K-15 | Spain:13 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 | Brazil:14

Company:

Mij Film Co.

Trivia:

Red Fish, which appear commonly throughout the film, are one of the seven symbols of Nowruz, the Iranian New Year, and symbolize life within life. Ironically, Nowruz is on March 20, the day the United States staged the 2003 Invasion of Iraq, during which the film takes place.

Movie Connections:

References Titanic (1997)

Remarkably manages to sustain a burning candle of hope, however faint the glow.

A viewing of this film earlier tonight at the Chicago Film Festival was immediately followed, in my case, by a trip to a bathroom stall where I stared blankly at a wall for fifteen minutes amidst a state of pure, and surprisingly prolonged, emotional helplessness. Prior to this evening, Schindler's List, Life is Beautiful and a select handful of others comprised my elite list of unforgettable films that fearlessly tackle the ambivalent, or at least paradoxical, human condition by managing to straddle the inherent injustice and the unfettered hope of perseverance, but Turtles Can Fly now ranks above all others. Despite frequenting this website for years, I have never been previously inspired to comment on anything.