Rahim Soltani (Amir Jadidi) is on leave from prison for falling behind on his debts owed to his estranged father-in-law, Bahram (Mohsen Tanabandeh).  When Rahim finds a purse abandoned and full of gold coins, he considers selling the gold to pay back his debt, gain his freedom, and marry his new love, Farkondeh (Sahar Goldust).  Rahim ultimately decides to try and find the owner to return the purse, but when the story breaks and goes viral, not everyone believes Rahim’s intentions are as selfless as he makes them out to be, and soon after his entire family is part of a moral chess game in which Rahim’s freedom and their reputation in the community hang in the balance. 

Asghar Farhadi writes and directs his latest moral tale for a modern generation, A Hero, for distribution in the USA by Amazon Studios.  The story takes many twists and turns as it elaborates the seemingly simple premise as Farhadi allows each of the characters to make and defend their choices.  By allowing each character room to grow and defend their stance, Farhadi adds incredible depth to the “honesty is the best policy” message of the film.  No one is totally free from guilt, blame, or scorn in this tale and as the narrative unfolds, our relationships and allegiances to the characters ebb and flow as the nagging question of “What Would You Do?” pervades. 

Jadidi is incredible in the leading role here and makes it so easy to root for.  His wide eyes and heart of gold welcome us into the film which makes his actions in the latter half of the film all the more striking.  Despite the opening introduction, it becomes clear that Rahim is not as pure of heart as we may be used to for protagonists in this type of story, and because that grey area is established it makes A Hero, and especially Rahim as a character, worthy of the scrutinous examination and discussion of which there may not ever be a true consensus. The film asks a lot of Jadidi, occupying almost every scene in the 127-minute film, and he has many complex relationships that need to be quickly established so that Farhadi can begin to interrogate them almost immediately.

It is one of the faults – albeit relatively minor – in Farhadi’s script is his quick and blunt introductions.  With a large ensemble, it can be a struggle to keep the characters and their relationships to one another straight in the first act of the film.  The bookending sequences find the story treading water as it either strives to set up all of the pieces or knock them all down.  It is not to say that what Farhadi is doing here is uninteresting, on the contrary, it is just not as smoothly plotted as the central act. 

It is in that second act where the film really finds its footing and its antagonist, for lack of a better word, in Tanabandeh’s Bahram.  As Rahim’s creditor, the court of public opinion which quickly grasps the feel-good story of a jailed man for debt returning money instead of using it for selfish means begins to place pressure on Bahram to forgive the debt.  Bahram is opposed to the idea and grows suspicious of Rahim’s story which causes him to be seen less favorably among the community, but as the story continues to go viral, Bahram’s suspicions seem to gain more weight. 

The final sequences of the film, like the beginning, falter a little bit as Farhadi continues to add more complexity to the plot instead of focusing on narrowing it back down.  It becomes an absolute frenzy at times and tensions are high.  It is unfortunate that the story slips out of his hands here, but the manic energy of these last throes of the narrative makes the stillness of the final scene all the more powerful for characters and audiences alike as they finally have a moment to reflect back on the events of the film and feel the weight of the tragedy that has unfolded here.  The film and its central arc are not apocalyptic in scale, but as Farhadi does wind down his narrative, the weight on the conscience from the moral war which was waged begins to show and take its toll.  

A Hero is a tangled narrative, but a compelling one.  While it is not a puzzle box film by any means, it would still reward audiences upon multiple viewings as like a “Choose Your Own Adventure” book, there are countless characters and paths that can be examined and followed, and their choices and motivations discussed.  Farhadi, perhaps better than any writer/director working today, has an expert grasp on morality and how in today’s day and age, answers are never simply black and white.  This is an age-old cautionary tale about how a little white lie can grow exponentially and get out of hand, but Farhadi is careful not to place the blame solely on any single person, but rather the entire ensemble must take responsibility.