Hit the Road

Mohammad Hassan Madjooni and Amin Simiar in Hit the Road

The best directorial debut in many a moon and the first undeniably great new film I've seen in 2022, Panah Panahi's Hit the Road is a road film suffused with heart, soul, and humor. The film pictures a family of four on a road trip through rural Iran. The reasons for the excursion are covert, the three older members of the clan are intent on keeping a few secrets from the little brother. The tyke, played winningly by Rayan Sarlak, is full of beans and is the source of most of the humor of the film. Mohammad Hassan Madjooni plays the father and Amin Simiar the older brother. These are less showy roles, but both players are superb. Best of all is Pantea Panahiha as the mother. Panahi twice fixes his camera on Panahiha in close-up at important junctures and the actress is able to convey a shifting array of emotions in a few fleeting moments. It is a titanic performance.

The first third of the film focuses on the interactions of the family members, doing a wonderful job of establishing the characters and the relationship dynamics between them. Panahi establishes the loving nature of the family, but also the irritations that result from close confinement and intimacy. At two crucial points in the film, at the start of a separation and at the moment when a reunion is postponed, Panahi chooses to film the sequences in long shot. This may seem a contrary choice by the director, intimate and emotional moments seem to demand that the camera be closer to the action, but the characters' have been so well developed by this point, we know what the emotions on their faces will read. These moments contain an attribute rarely found in modern cinema, discretion. The long shots also reinforce the notion that there are larger historical forces that are shaping the destiny of the characters.

The stunning landscape of Iran, indeed, is a major element in the film, as is music. Tunes range from Schubert to Iranian pop songs. The songs help the character tap into their underlying emotions and provide them catharsis. At film's end, the remaining inhabitants of the vehicle ride on with a song in their hearts and tears in their eyes, all traveling down the road to meet their own mortality.

A lot of films I see are targeted for specific audiences. Art films, action films, horror films, etc. Hit the Road is a film of universal appeal and scope. I cannot recommend it highly enough as a film that I think will enchant everyone. It contains multitudes. I haven't even touched on its cinephilia and its touching portrait of the family's bond with their dog. A film I will treasure and revisit.