Runner - 1985
Directed by Amir Naderi
Young orphaned Amiro (Majid Niroumand), who supports himself by selling ice water and shining shoes, finds joy and purpose competing in the races that he and other orphans stage, chasing after airplanes from the nearby airfield, and learning how to read.
Color, 1 hour 34 minutes, Farsi
Original Title: Davandeh
Trailer currently not available
Star Rating
Firouzan Rank # 21
Cast
| Majid Niroumand | Amiro |
| Mousa Turkizadeh | |
| Ali Reza Gholamzadeh | |
| Shirzad Beshghal |
Crew
| Writer | Amir Naderi Behrouz Gharibpour |
| Director | Amir Naderi |
| Producer | Fatollah Dalili |
| Director of Photography | Firouz Malekzadeh |
| Sound Recordist | Nezam Aldin Kiaee |
| Production Designer | Amir Naderi Mohammad Hassanzadeh |
| Editor | Bahram Beyzaie |
| Sound Mixer | Mohammad Haghighi |
Pictures
Amiro passes his time by yelling at the planes that are constantly coming and going.
Collecting bottles discarded by foreigners.
Amiro's makeshift home.
One of the many competitions staged by the children - first to reach the moving train wins.
Amiro finds that there is money in shining the shoes of foreigners.
Prior to this encounter Amiro simply bought magazines for the pictures but an seemingly innocent comment - "Boys your age all can read" - sets him off.
Tearing his magazines and cursing, "I must read. I must write. Why can't I!"
Amiro enrolls in school and begins to learn the alphabet.
On to the next competition - a block of ice amongst the flames of the oil field.
The race to reach the block of ice.
DVD
DVD box art currently not available
External Reviews
By Stephen Holden The New York Times
In the poignant opening scene of Amir Naderi's film "The Runner," a ragged young boy standing at the edge of a harbor waves and shouts imploringly at the silhouette of an oil tanker slipping silently through the mist. The setting is the Iranian port city of Abadan. Amiro (Majid Niroumand), the film's subject, is a homeless 13-year-old who lives in the hulk of an abandoned ship and ekes out a living picking through garbage. Continued
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