Golshifteh Farahani and Mathieu Amarlic in Chicken with Plums. The actors play mutual romantic interests who are torn apart over time. (Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classic)

Nasser Ali Khan, the male lead in Chicken with Plums, has given up on life.

A noted and celebrated violinist, Ali Khan gives up his storied career after losing the love of his life, Irane.

Ali Khan isn’t technically rational in his decision to forgo life and decides to await death from the comfort of his own bed.
It is from this bed that Ali Khan begins to reminisce on his past life, particularly how he fell in love with Irane in the first place.

It is from these glimpses of Ali Khan’s past that Chicken with Plums gain its meat cinematically.

Chicken with Plums is a true ode to directors Vincent Paronnaud and Marjane Satrapi’s visual heft.

The filmmakers choose to work with wide, colorful shots that are vast testaments to the vibrant culture of 1950s Tehran.
Despite their French roots, Paronnaud and Satrapi dive into the Iranian culture head first.

There are elements of Chicken with Plums that draw from cinema outside the classical Hollywood format. The audience sees scenes derived from the French style of cinema to India’s massively popular Bollywood culture.

Considering the melting pot of cinematic styles employed for Chicken with Plums, the film is surprisingly coherent.

A bulk of the film’s coherency comes from its compelling storyline that ranks with some of cinema’s finest.

Paronnaud and Satrapi’s camera work cleverly works so that the audience actually feels for Ali Khan and Irane.

As the two characters fall in and out of love with each other, each scene increases its story crescendo.

While the visuals are stunning and the love story is formidable, Chicken with Plums also packs a comedic punch.

Paronnaud, who first showed us his sense of humor in the French film Persepolis, once again blends together a compelling romance with humor that draws from the bumbling male lead.

When it comes to macabre humor, Paronnaud is a master. At times during Chicken with Plums, the humor is much needed.

Considering that the film, when boiled down, is essentially about a man awaiting the fate of death, Chicken with Plums can at times feel morbid and melancholy.

However, Paronnaud reminds us that even when staring through the eyes of death, that it’s okay to laugh sometimes.
In terms of acting, Mathieu Amarlic commands the screen as Nasser Ali Khan.

There’s a careful line Amalric walks when playing a character that is supposed to be solemn and funny. However, Amalric pulls off both sides of Khan with ease.

Golshifteh Faraharvi is entrancing as Irane.

Chicken with Plums is peppered with supporting characters that form a strong net for the lead actors to fall back on. When a scene loses steam, the supporting characters are there to bring it back to life.

As a French film based in 1950s Iran, Chicken with Plums can easily be misunderstood.

However, after one single viewing, you’ll simply be left hungry for more.