Cannes Winner “Aโ Simple Accident” Arrives in Theatersโ October 1st
Cannes Film FestivalS โPalme d’Or winner, Jafarโข Panahi’s “A Simple โAccident,” releasedโ in French-speaking theatersโ on October 1st,โ masterfully โขtransforms a โseeminglyโค minor incident into a gripping thriller set against the backdrop โof โฃtrauma within โขIranian โsociety.
The film centers on a manโ traveling with his wifeโ and daughter who accidentally strikes โa dog with โฃhisโฃ car.While stopping โขat a roadside stationโค to borrow tools, he encounters another man who believes he hasโค found โthe perpetrator of aโ past โฃwrong.
This โchance encounter unravels into โa tense confrontation as the man โคattempts to exact revenge, โฃinitially threatening to bury his โคperceived tormentor โขalive. Doubt creeps in, leadingโข him to seek confirmation from โขothers who may recognize โฃthe man as someone connected toโ the โrepression of theโ Iranian regime. โค Aโค gathering of former victims โคslowly forms, each โconfronting the โฃpossibility that this man coudl be their executionerโฆ or not.
“Aโ Simple Accident” โmarks โคPanahi’sโฃ twelfth feature film. Filmed without โofficial authorization from the Islamic Republic,โค the director utilizes the โescalating events following theโ accident to portray a complex โคmosaic โฃofโ Iranianโค society grappling with the lasting scars of the mullahs’ regime.
Critics praise the film’s moral โคcomplexity andโค precise โฃcharacter growth, โhighlighting its powerful testimonyโฃ to the horrors committed under the Islamic Republic.The awarding โขof the Palme โขd’Orโฃ atโค Cannes was widely anticipated,recognizing Panahi’s cinematic clarity and impactful storytelling.
Note: 5/5
Rafael Wolf/sf
“A Simple Accident” by Jafar Panahi, starring Vahid Mobasheri. In French-speaking theaters since October 1, 2025.