Söğüt Tree (Film)

The Willow Tree (original title: Beed-e Majnoon) is a 2005 Iranian drama film. The screenplay was written by Majid Majidi, Fouad Nahas, and Nasser Hashemzadeh, with Majid Majidi also serving as director and producer.

The film tells the story of Yusuf (Parviz Parastui), who loses his sight as a child due to an accident involving fireworks. At age forty-five, Yusuf is a literature professor at a university and reads and writes using the Braille alphabet. Despite his blindness, he appears to live in a small paradise—surrounded by his devoted and compassionate wife, daughter, home, balcony, and garden. Yet he carries deep inner pain and constantly prays to God to restore his vision.

His prayers are finally answered when Yusuf undergoes a corneal transplant surgery in Paris and regains his sight. Before the operation, while hospitalized, he meets and befriends Murtaza (Mohammad Amir Naji), who is gradually losing his vision. Murtaza constantly gives Yusuf walnuts and speaks of how important the walnut tree is to him. Yusuf, in turn, says the willow tree brings him good fortune. Murtaza draws a portrait of Yusuf.

About two months later, Yusuf returns to Türkiye with his sight restored. Everyone—his family, mother, relatives, acquaintances, and students—greets him at the airport with great excitement. Yusuf examines each person carefully; his eyes first fix on a young woman, then on an elderly woman. Before leaving for Paris, his mother (Afarin Obeisi) had given him a talisman. He takes it from his pocket and shows it to the elderly woman. The woman nods silently with her eyes. Yusuf tries to say “Mother,” his voice trembling. His mother gestures toward his wife (Roya Teymourian) and daughter (Melika Eslafi). Meanwhile, Yusuf’s gaze returns once more to the young woman.

After this event, Yusuf’s world changes completely. Having regained his sight, he attempts to rediscover the world—but this new vision does not bring the pure happiness he expected. He watches indifferently as a pickpocket works on the subway. Noticing his lack of reaction, the pickpocket brazenly continues his theft. Yusuf begins to see his wife’s devotion as pity rather than love, and he grows to hate it. Overwhelmed by sorrow for the life he never lived, he burns and destroys his writings and everything around him.

During this time, he receives a letter from Murtaza. In it, Murtaza writes: “Tell me what is worth seeing, and I will tell you what is not.” He includes the portrait he drew of Yusuf beneath the willow tree before the surgery. The letter continues: “I would like to know whether the willow tree still brings you good fortune.” The same God who answered his prayers now presents Yusuf with a new problem, and Yusuf begins to pray again—for a second chance.

^{Scene from the Film (}IMDb⁾

The film uses long takes and extended sequences to immerse the audience in the characters’ experiences. In addition to religious symbols—such as the talisman, animal sacrifice, and offering food as vows—the film employs symbols like walnuts, ants, and wind. The film explores, as a metaphor, the difference between second chances in life and the distinction between physical sight and inner insight. Yusuf’s struggle with the confusion and deception brought by his new vision addresses themes of gratitude and ingratitude.

^{Scene from the Film (}IMDb⁾

The Willow Tree was released in Iran on 11 August 2005. The film’s original language is Persian and has a runtime of 1 hour and 36 minutes (96 minutes). Shot in color, the film’s audio mix is Dolby Digital and its aspect ratio is 1.85:1. In addition to its release in Iran, the film opened in the United States and Canada on 5 August 2007, earning $6,048 during its opening weekend and a total of $25,752 in those markets. Its worldwide box office gross amounts to $51,499.