“Walnut Tree” on tragedy of Iraqi chemical attack on Sardasht hits theaters

TEHRAN –(Iranart)- Iranian director Mohammad-Hossein Mahdavian’s war drama “Walnut Tree” made based on the true story of the profound tragedy of Iraq’s chemical attack on the Iranian town of Sardasht in 1987 hit the Iranian movie theaters on Wednesday.

It tells the story of Qader Mulanpur, a man who was away when his family was affected by the chemical attack in a village near Sardasht. His effort to save his pregnant wife and their three children is in vain and they die one by one from the fatal wounds sustained as a result of the chemical attack.

The film had its premiere in Tehran during the 38th edition of the Fajr Film Festival in February 2020 and brought Mahdavian the Crystal Simorgh for best director.

“This film is about the grief of the fathers of this land, and I dedicate my prize to all the bereaved fathers of our country,” Mahdavian said after accepting his award.

In addition, Payman Maadi was crowned the best actor at the festival for his portrayal of Qader.

The film was screened in the Spectrum: Alternatives of the 24th edition of the Shanghai International Film Festival, which was recently organized in the Chinese megacity.

“Walnut Tree” was among the movies competing to represent Iran during the 93rd Academy Awards in the best foreign-language film category.

However, Majid Majidi’s child labor movie “Sun Children” was submitted to the Academy’s race.

In 1987, Iraq bombarded the Iranian town of Sardasht and the surrounding regions in West Azerbaijan Province with chemical weapons, killing over 1000 and injuring over 8000 civilians, many of whom were permanently disabled.

Iran was subjected to several violent attacks with chemical weapons by Iraq during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war.

According to a study, about 6,000 Iranians were killed during the attacks, and today, about 55,000 survivors of these attacks are still suffering from the aftereffects.

source: Tehran Times