The film’s plot is deceptively simple. It follows a film crew, led by a director (a stand-in for Kiarostami himself), as they make a movie about the earthquake-stricken villagers. The central story, however, becomes the relationship between two local residents hired for the movie:
When the cameras roll, Tahereh refuses to speak to Hossein or look him in the eye between takes, deeply frustrating the film crew. The movie then becomes a documentation of Hossein’s relentless, gentle courtship of Tahereh during the breaks in filming, using the cinematic space as his only opportunity to plead his case. Themes and Cinematic Philosophy Through the olive trees- Abbas Kiarostami
Through the Olive Trees takes this meta-fictional premise further. It tells the story of the filming of And Life Goes On itself, focusing on the complicated relationship between one of the actors in that film, Hossein, and his real-life obsession, Tahereh, who is also acting in the film within the film. 2. Meta-Cinema: Where Art Meets Life The film’s plot is deceptively simple
Through the Olive Trees (1994) is the final chapter of Abbas Kiarostami’s Koker Trilogy The movie then becomes a documentation of Hossein’s
The narrative engine of the film is the off-screen, one-sided love affair between Hossein Rezai (playing himself) and Tahereh Ladanian (playing a role). Hossein is poor, speaks informally, and lives in a tent. Tahereh is educated, literate (she reads her lines from a script, while Hossein must memorize them), and comes from a family of landowners.