Poet of the Wastes
Like the Trailer? Watch this full-length film on Asia Pacific Films
Poet of the Wastes – After administering rigorous examinations in science, religion and politics, the Iranian government assigns a handful of men from the nation’s unemployed millions to the undignified job of street-cleaning.
The crew is made up of ambitious young dreamers, including a pilot who stares into the sky and a musician who conducts over an orchestra of trash. One, a childlike poet, assembles scraps of a beautiful widow’s unsent letters and reads of her lonely hopelessness. To comfort her, he anonymously mails her the discarded poems of a renowned poet, accompanied by anonymous love letters in his own hand. As the two trade words–his in blank envelopes, hers in the trash–his care for this sorrowful woman grows into quiet love. But how could she ever fall for a destitute trashman?
A tender, beautiful film, Poet of the Wastes is an eloquent prayer to the uplifting power of literature and simple acts of love.
Director: Mohammad Ahmadi (2005) / Run Time: 81 min.
Awards/Festivals:
- African, Asian and Latin American Film Festival- “City of Milan” Prize, 2006
- Reel World International Film Festival- Outstanding International Feature Award, 2006
- Molodist International Film Festival- Ecumenical Award, 2006
- Didar Film Festival- Best Film, 2006
2 responses to “Poet of the Wastes”
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An average evening was made delightful by watching POET OF THE WASTES tonight.
The Chaplinesque Protagonist captures our heart early on in the story with his sweet naiveté and idealism – and with hardly a spoken word. Persian dance, the love of poetry, and the necessity of taking rigid tests in religion, politics and science before being hired as a Street Cleaner, makes the movie specific to Iranian culture. But the pain and pull of unrequited love, the fight to maintain dignity while living with broken dreams in poverty, and the loneliness while living in the midst of millions feels universal.
The pacing, the humor and the distinct definition of each character and scene make this film successful and a satisfying experience. So I sing praises to the director, Mohammad Ahmadi- a person I now want to know more about. However, the final “Ah Ha” came during the film credits when I read the name of the screenwriter – Moshen Makhmalbaf.
Thank you for putting this great movie on your website.
It truly depicts the sad and bitter part of getting a job in Iran, as Jeannette also mentioned. It was sad, but at the same time funny to see what their rigid requirements are for a job like street cleaning. It shows that they are looking for people and want to hire those people who are very much like them, think like them and accept and recognize them. That’s true for their whole existence. I mean the Iranian government.
I was really affected by this man’s true and innocent love for the woman of their dreams. He never get the courage to tell her about his feelings and he would rather have her in his dreams, than to lose his dignity and reveal his love to her and hear a “NO” word along side with a pity look from her.