The Past The Past Trailer
Asghar Farhadi

The Past

 7.7

An Iranian man deserts his French wife and her two children to return to his homeland. Meanwhile, his wife starts up a new relationship, a reality her husband confronts upon his wife's request for a divorce.

  • Director: Asghar Farhadi
  • Main Cast: Tahar Rahim, Bérénice Bejo, Ali Mosaffa
  • Soundtrack: Evgueni Galperine
  • Cinematography: Mahmoud Kalari
  • Screenplay: Asghar Farhadi

Original title in France is Le Passé.

  • Cinema Premiere: January 8, 2014



What do English critics think?

15 english reviews of The Past (2013)

  • 1. Tampa Bay Times
    10 / 10

    With "The Past", Farhadi again displays a gift for poking into corners of nondescript lives and discovering unique drama.
    - Steve Persall

    Tampa Bay Times »

  • 2. IndieWire
    9.1 / 10

    Asghar Farhadi’s "The Past" confirms his mastery over exploring human behavior
    - Eric Kohn

    IndieWire »

  • 3. The AV Club
    9.1 / 10

    "The Past" is another emotionally complex triumph from Asghar Farhadi
    - Mike D'Angelo

    The AV Club »

  • 4. Arizona Republic
    9 / 10

    The revelations tend toward melodrama, and the messy complications would not be out of place in a soap opera.
    - John Beifuss

    Arizona Republic »

  • 5. The Dissolve
    9 / 10

    Farhadi knows that fights between adults aren’t just direct hits. They also leave collateral damage.
    - Scott Tobias

    The Dissolve »

  • 6. Wall Street Journal
    9 / 10

    The film is commanding in its own right, another exploration of a volatile situation — an estranged husband returning from Iran when his wife requests a divorce — in which flashes of insight or understanding lead to new mysteries.
    - Joe Morgenstern

    Wall Street Journal »

  • 7. New York Post
    8.8 / 10

    If "The Past" doesn’t equal the masterpiece that preceded it, it’s still an exceptional film from a man who is clearly one of the best working directors.
    - Farran Smith Nehme

    New York Post »

  • 8. The New Yorker
    8 / 10

    his gift for pulling us deep into the story, and for conveying the major burdens of these supposedly minor lives, is unimpaired.
    - Anthony Lane

    The New Yorker »

  • 9. The Globe and Mail
    7.5 / 10

    Domestic drama with all the tension of a thriller
    - Liam Lacey

    theglobeandmail.com »

  • 10. Movie Nation
    7.5 / 10

    The surprises in "The Past" don’t justify its length, but Farhadi has created a believable, lived-in world of cluttered kitchens, cramped small businesses, a Parisian community of Iranian expats and the little people with big problems who inhabit them.
    - Roger Moore

    Movie Nation »

  • 11. The Playlist
    7.5 / 10

    "The Past" ever so slightly fumbles from being great, to very, very good.
    - Kevin Jagernauth

    The Playlist »

  • 12. Slant Magazine
    6.3 / 10

    Asghar Farhadi navigates his complicated narrative thicket with an apparent ease, but he isn’t able to blend the brushstrokes as he has in prior films.
    - Chuck Bowen

    slantmagazine.com »

  • 13. The Times-Picayune
    6 / 10

    As slow as "The Past" is to get going, it never stops building to its eventual crescendo, which pays dividends.
    - Mike Scott

    The Times-Picayune »

  • 14. Vulture
    6 / 10

    It’s absorbing for a long while, at least half its two-hour running time, but it goes on and on, piling on twists, adding devices so clunky they’d have embarrassed most nineteenth-century problem-dramatists, refusing to jell despite the actors’ prodigious suffering.
    - David Edelstein

    Vulture »

  • 15. Time Out
    4 / 10

    There’s just so much of "The Past" that doesn’t have that crucial ring of truth to it. Disappointing and underwhelming.
    - Dave Calhoun

    Time Out »

8 foreign reviews of The Past (2013)

  • 1. Moviezine
    10 / 10

    Translated from swedish: "The Past" is a gripping relationship drama about parenthood, guilt, jealousy and betrayal that stands the test of time. This is absolutely sensational!
    - Victoria Machmudov

    Swedish: moviezine.se »

  • 2. Expressen
    10 / 10

    Translated from swedish: "The Past" is hypnotic, gripping and almost flawless.
    - Mats Bråstedt

    Swedish: expressen.se »

  • 3. Göteborgs-Posten
    10 / 10

    Translated from swedish: "The Past" is a tangled, broken family story that grows into a masterfully crafted universal drama.
    - Maria Domellöf-Wik

    Swedish: gp.se »

  • 4. Fredrik Fyhr
    10 / 10

    Translated from swedish: Error-free, is the first word I will think of after seeing it. "The Past" is a flawless film. Every aspect of the film works. It's like a great emotional machine that generates empathy, sympathy, understanding and compassion.

    Swedish: fredrikfyhr.se »

  • 5. Svenska Dagbladet
    8.3 / 10

    Translated from swedish: The intrigue would have become too multifaceted and complicated if the director had not been so nimble and compliant with both the camera and the actors. The strength lies in the glances, bodies, and subtext: long-term lovers hastily embrace each other with bodies that no longer fit together.
    - Hynek Pallas

    Swedish: svd.se »

  • 6. SVT
    8 / 10

    Translated from swedish: The family theme is universal, Farhadi explained at the press conference in Cannes last spring. Everyone can relate to that situation, he said, regardless of what language the tender or hurtful words are spoken in. If you judge by his filmography, you can only agree.
    - Fredrik Sahlin

    Swedish: svt.se »

  • 7. Filmeye
    8 / 10

    Translated from swedish: Asghar Farhadi, who also wrote the screenplay for the film, clearly conveys that it is a pity for all those involved in this story, not least the children. Even though he does not judge, he seems to want to show that what is right for some family members has consequences for others.
    - Jan-Eje Ferling

    Swedish: filmeye.se »

  • 8. Uppsala Nya Tidning
    8 / 10

    Translated from swedish: A sovereign film that takes its starting point in the everyday and turns it into a relationship thriller.
    - Björn G Stenberg

    Swedish: unt.se »



World-Wide Box Office Revenue

Box Office

The Past has earned a total of 12 673 462 dollars from cinemas across the world (the global box office).

Explore the director

Other movies by Asghar Farhadi

About Elly Poster
About Elly
2009
  • ⏱️  119 min ⭐️  9.1
A Separation Poster
  • ⏱️  123 min ⭐️  8.1