‘Zalava’ vies at Fantasy FilmFest

Iranian movie ‘Zalava’ has been screening at the Fantasy FilmFest in Germany.

Directed by Arsalan Amiri, the film is representing Iran at the 2022 edition of the event currently underway in Hamburg and six other German cities.

The movie narrates an imaginary story in an imaginary land with imaginary people in the 70s.

The inter-genre film narrates the tale of people’s fear of an unknown phenomenon and their efforts to bring back security to the region.

A synopsis for ‘Zalava’ reads, “When a village claims to be cursed by a demon, a gendarmerie sergeant attempts to denounce the exorcist in charge, whom he believes is nothing but a fraud.

In 1978, in a small village called Zalava, some inhabitants claim there is a demon among them. Masoud, a young gendarmerie sergeant, goes to investigate. He encounters an exorcist attempting to rid the village of the demon. He arrests the exorcist on charges of fraud, but he finds himself stuck in a cursed house with his lover. The villagers, who believe they are both possessed by the demon, decided to burn down the house.”

Navid Pour-Faraj, Pouria Rahimi-Sam and Hoda Zeinolabedin have played the key roles.

Established in Hamburg in 1987, the Fantasy FilmFest celebrates new releases in niche categories, from indie horror and psychological thrillers to science-fiction and dystopia.

This year’s edition of the event is underway from March 30 – April 7.

FM/FM