"The Taste of Cherry" is the only Iranian movie I've ever seen. The film is non-violent, non-loving, and only the protagonist talks to various passengers from beginning to end, as a way to show his activities to end his life. The beginning part was a little monotonous, but because of the suspense, I wanted to know if the protagonist had ended his life and had the idea of looking down. When I thought the film was to show world-weariness and desperation for life, I found that I was wrong. After watching the film, I found out that the film is actually discussing the meaning of life. It tells us that although life is difficult, there are many people who are struggling to survive. And every person in the film who rejects Buddy represents their reason for living. This work is very abstract, but it contains profound philosophical thinking.
The film uses a lot of monotonous long takes, a stylistic feature of Iranian cinema. Abbas' realist film style borders on documentary. Although this film does not have too much plot, nor does it explain too much about the ins and outs, it is not particularly boring, because it has suspense, leaving more space for the audience to experience and think. In the process of Buddy talking with people, some life philosophies are conveyed from the film, which makes the film have a depth of thought and an artistic charm.
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