Kiarostami constantly questions the filmmaker’s role. The director in the film is kind but manipulative, using Hossein’s real desperation to add authenticity to his fiction. At one point, he forces Hossein to repeat a simple line (“Good evening, sir. My wife and I are grateful to you”) over fifty times—not for technical perfection, but to wear down the actor’s ego. Meanwhile, Tahereh’s silence off-camera is her only form of agency. Kiarostami asks: does cinema exploit its subjects, or can it give them a voice?
Through the Olive Trees competed for the Palme d'Or at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival and consolidated Kiarostami’s reputation as a global cinematic pioneer. The film exemplifies the power of the Iranian New Wave, proving that profound philosophical questions can be explored through simple, localized stories. It remains a masterclass in meta-fiction, showing how art can emerge from tragedy, and how life invariably triumphs over devastation.
The humor and tension of the film arise from the friction between these layers. Tahereh stubbornly refuses to speak to Hossein when the camera stops rolling. When the script forces her to address him as her husband, her silences and hesitant deliveries drive the fictional director to frustration. The Philosophy of Non-Professional Actors Through the olive trees- Abbas Kiarostami
Kiarostami frequently uses non-professional actors playing versions of themselves. The film blurs the lines, making it difficult for the audience to discern where the scripted narrative ends and real life begins [5.1].
The young woman playing his bride, who is also the object of Hossein's genuine affection. Kiarostami constantly questions the filmmaker’s role
Through the Olive Trees ends by suggesting that the only place love might exist is in the frame, in the act of looking. The real Hossein might go home alone that night. But the filmed Hossein, the one who exists for eternity through Kiarostami’s lens, might have finally won the girl.
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