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The Cyclist

Name: The Cyclist
Genre: Drama
Released: 1989-02-01
Duration: 79 min
Rating: 6.7

★ 6,7 /10 (32 Votes)

1989 FA 79 min

Overview

The wife of Nasim, an Afghan immigrant in Iran, is gravely ill. He needs money to pay for her care, but his day labor digging wells does not pay enough. A friend connects Nasim to a two-bit promoter who sells tickets to watch Nasim ride a bicycle continuously for a week. The promoter brings in sick and aged spectators, haranguing them to find hope in Nasim's strength. Aided by his son, who feeds him as he rides, Nasim grinds out the days and shivering nights. Local officials believe this may be a plot and Nasim may be a spy; they try to sabotage him as do those who bet he won't finish the week. Will desperation alone get Nasim the money? Is any triumph an illusion?

Release date

01/02/1989

Votes

Popularity

1.4

Genres

Drama

Status

Released

Original title

بای‌سیکل‌ران

Language

Runtime

79 min

No photo

Mahshid Afsharzadeh

Gypsy Woman

No photo

Firouz Kiani

Motorcyclist

Samira Makhmalbaf

No photo

Mohammadreza Maleki

Jomeh

Esmail Soltanian

Showman

No photo

Moharram Zaynalzadeh

Nasim

Original Soundtrack

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In the aftermath of the Soviet invasion and civil war, hundreds of thousands of Afghans fled across the border with Iran. There they struggled to survive, offering themselves as day labourers at exploitative wages, harassed by officials and just ignored by the bulk of Iranian society. Mohsen Makhmalbaf's 1987 film <i>The Cyclist</i> is an allegory for the Afghan refugee experience, Nasim (Moharram Zaynalzadeh) must pay the hospital stay of his ailing wife and bring up his son Jomeh (Mohammad Reza Maleki), but even backbreaking labour as a well-digger doesn't pay the bills. When a local bus…

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