“You haven’t changed.”
That’s the first line of Asghar Farhadi’s latest outing. It’s delivered in French, from behind glass and carries no subtitles. It’s spoken to Marie (Bérénice Bejo) by her soon-to-be-ex-husband, Ahmad (Ali Mosaffa). Like almost everything else in “The Past,” the line is true, and then again, it’s a lie.
Marie has a new lover, Samir (Tahar Rahim), who has moved into her house with his young son (Elyes Aguis). Marie’s own two daughters (Pauline Burlet and Jeanne Jestin) were fathered by the man who preceded Ahmad. As the story unfurls, it becomes a long, hard look at how all these heedless adult couplings affect children. On the way, Farhadi gets a performance out of little Aguis that’s the most indelible part of the film.
The Iranian director’s last film, “A Separation,” was as universally acclaimed as Oscar winners for Best Foreign Film ever get.
“The Past,” though set in a glum Paris suburb and not in Tehran, shares some of the prior film’s characteristics. It’s another finely acted domestic drama, with a script that forces moviegoers to reassess the characters many times, and with elegant camerawork that constantly reveals new bits of information.
If “The Past” doesn’t equal the masterpiece that preceded it, it’s still an exceptional film from a man who is clearly one of the best working directors.