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The President

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Georgia, France, United Kingdom · 2014
1h 55m
Director Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Starring Misha Gomiashvili, Dachi Orvelashvili, Ia Sukhitashvili, Guja Burduli
Genre Drama

The story of a dictator of an imaginary country in the Caucasus, who is forced to escape following a coup d’état, and begins a journey to discover his country in the company of his five-year-old grandson. The two travel across the lands that the President once governed. Now, disguised as a street musician to avoid being recognized, the former dictator comes into contact with his people, which he comes to know from a different point of view.

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What are critics saying?

83

The Film Stage by

At times it may be difficult to watch, and the plot does feel episodic, but it remains powerful, challenging filmmaking.

70

The New York Times by Ben Kenigsberg

The Iranian director Mohsen Makhmalbaf (“A Moment of Innocence,” “Kandahar”) is not known for his kineticism, but The President — which he has suggested is his comment on the Arab Spring — has surprising urgency and sweep.

50

Variety by Jay Weissberg

An allegorical lesson about dictatorships and the cycle of violence they breed, Mohsen Makhmalbaf’s The President unfortunately offers a simplified and simplistic reduction, akin to an ancient morality tale without the ancients’ brevity – rather than sophistication cloaked in innocence, the pic feels like didacticism submerged in naivete.

80

CineVue by John Bleasdale

The President has an urgent relevance to all too many countries around the world, including those touched by the Arab Spring; a darkly comic and poignant portrait of an Ozymandian fall from grace and the subsequent damage that ensues.

83

Portland Oregonian by Marc Mohan

Inspired by uprisings in the former Soviet bloc as well as, more pointedly, the Arab Spring, Makhmalbaf serves up a surprisingly tense, sometimes poignant parable. It's good to have him back.

83

IndieWire by Steve Greene

Even though The President lacks some of the subtlety that made Makhmalbaf’s previous work transcendent, this film is still a worthy testament to a fiery storyteller determined to use the medium as a necessary means of subversion.

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