Bodnia doesn't treat the line as a joke, which it is, which makes it all the funnier. Much of "Rosewater" is like that bit: inventive, well-paced and well-placed, even if it feels … what? Too perfect? A little glib? Why argue if it works? And yet reasonable, sympathetic people can argue.
Bahari's memoir pointed up the miserable comic absurdity of his confinement and questioning. Bernal's scenes with Bodnia anchor the picture, although no one's better than Shohreh Aghdashloo, the veteran actress who plays Bahari's mother. When Rosewater and his men arrive at her door to arrest her son, the averted glances and tense verbal back-and-forths between Aghdashloo and Bodnia feel true and honest.
In the interrogation sequences, Rosewater reveals himself to be hopelessly in love with his own fantasies of libertine Western ways. Early scenes in "Rosewater" reintroduce Bahari to Iran (the film was shot in Jordan) with the help of a brash motorcyclist (Dimitri Leonidas). The journalist is led to "Dish University," a hangout for Tehran's media-hungry progressives, named for the forbidden satellite dishes on the roof. After filming a protest march over the presidential election vote, one that turns into a bloody, bullet-strewn clash with troops, Bahari becomes a changed man, newly politicized, partly because he was affected by what he saw. And partly, too, because the (slightly artificial) progression from wide-eyed innocent to committed activist makes for a better dramatic setup.
Stewart was right to devote as much time as he does in "Rosewater" to the prison scenes. He handles everything outside that prison well, shooting with an unobtrusive hand-held camera for the most part. There are plenty of pure inventions in the movie, none more fetching than the shots of Bernal dancing to a Leonard Cohen song while in solitary confinement. Stewart's wryly observant qualities as a TV star serve him well in his feature film debut.
About the Author
