Certified Copy

 

Acclaimed Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami makes his first film outside his home country with Certified Copy; a tale of a relationship that takes on new meaning during a day spent in the Tuscan countryside. Juliette Binoche plays a single mother who meets English author James Miller (renowned opera singer William Shimell in his debut acting role) after a book reading. A few days later they take a trip to a nearby village, which has a history as a destination for couples to marry. In this setting our two protagonists’ conversation gradually hints that their relationship might not be what it initially appears. The mystery thickens rather than clarifies, yet rather than being a point for frustration it acts as a device through which the emotions entwined in past relationships can be explored. Over the course of the film the tone subtly becomes more melancholic and Certified Copy emerges as a carefully crafted work that contemplates the memories we choose to treasure and those we choose to forget.