Just 6.5
متری شیش و نیم
Both the beginning and the end of Just 6.5 could be from an American action film. In between, Saeed Roustayi pumps up the tempo and tension as Hollywood befits, yet his second film’s substance is nevertheless clearly Iranian. The cops argue interminably and the drug lord they are hunting is arrested mid-way through the film. But that doesn’t mean the bickering will end. There’s never been an action film with such long dialogues, and yet Roustayi still keeps the audience on the edge of their seats. Just 6.5 shows a side of Iran seldom covered by Iranian cinema. The number of drug addicts is increasing exponentially. It’s like fighting the sea for the drugs squad, Roustayi reveals in a police film in which every character is layered and believable, even the bad guy.
SAEED ROUSTAYI
Born in 1989, Saeed Roustayi graduated from Soore University with a Bachelor of Film and Television in Directing. Life and a Day (2015) was his first major cinematic work. At the Fajr International Film Festival, Roustayi won two Crystal Simorghs for Best Directing and Best Screenplay. He received the 2016 Reflet d’Or for Best Feature at the Geneva International Film Festival Tous Ecrans. For Just 6.5, Roustayi won the Best Director Award at the Tokyo International Film Festival in 2019. His works primarily focus on issues of social injustice. His new film Leila’s Brothers was selected for the Official Competition of the Cannes Film Festival.
Red Lotus 2022
Iran 2019
135 min | Color | Farsi with English subtitles
Directed by Saeed ROUSTAYI
Screenplay Saeed Roustayi Cinematography Hooman Behmanesh Editing Bahram Dehghani Music Payman Yazdanian Production design Mohsen Nasrollahi Costume design Ghazaleh Motamed
Cast Payman Maadi, Navid Mohammadzade, Parinaz Izadyar, Farhad Aslani, Houman Kiai, Mehdi Hosseinina, Yusef Khosrav
World sales Iranian Independents
Just 6.5 © Iranian Independents