「Following the sound into the painting」Abbas Kiarostami: “And Life Goes On” Amid the Ruins

Abbas’s poetic aesthetics temper drama through restraint, reaching the grand and profound amid the ordinary. Set against the backdrop of Iran’s devastating earthquake in 1990, the film “And Life Goes On” breaks free from the conventional tragic narratives typical of disaster‑themed works. With lingering long shots drifting through rubble and ruins, it quietly captures fleeting moments of ordinary people carrying on with their lives. He offers no didactic proclamations about the meaning of life. Instead, through the quiet, step‑by‑step rhythm of daily existence, he leads viewers to understand that impermanence is humanity’s eternal condition. Even when devastation strikes and fragility prevails, life’s inherent resilience flows onward like an endless river, constant and unbroken — and therein lies our reverence for life.

By Mr.Shan