September 8, 2023
FILM: FREMONT
DIRECTED BY: BABAK JALALI
STARRING: ANAITA WALI ZADA, JEREMY ALLEN WHITE, GREGG TURKINGTON
RATING: 3 ½ out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
There are not a lot of screenplays that pack as many ideas in their first acts as Fremont does. Writer/director Babak Jalali sets up a deeply layered character story of a young Afghan woman, Donya, who previously served as a translator for the U.S. Army. She is now a few months into her job as a fortune cookie maker in Fremont, California. Donya is played by first time actor Anaita Wali Zada who herself is an immigrant from Afghanistan and, like the character, speaks broken English but clearly understands how to get by and read the people in her new world.
The fortune cookie factory reflects the film’s central exploration of the various ways people attempt to find answers and make sense out of their lives. We all know people who anxiously await the “fortune” inside such cookies but how many really hope to gain from them an answer or direction? Many of the characters in the film want a change but how they attempt to accomplish it varies. One of Donya’s co-workers tries to find love through blind dates. Another suggests going to a palm reader for advice. Donya seeks out a psychiatrist to prescribe sleeping pills. She believes that any troubles she has will go away if she just has enough sleep. Her boss also buys her a head massager to stimulate new creative ideas. Eventually Donya must make a choice to remain in her current life or to take a chance on change.
The film also features characters either taking stimulants, whether it be cigarettes or coffee, or keeping themselves comforted by watching a TV series, playing video games, or in the case of Donya’s psychiatrist, reading the same book (Jack London’s White Fang) over and over. Everyone needs something to get them through their days. The film never judges the approaches used but objectively presents them as coping mechanisms people employ to solve their various questions and ills.
Fremont is a quiet, philosophical film rather than one that might be deemed “entertaining.” Yet, it’s messages ring loud and clear. There isn’t a wasted scene or character here for they all reveal the various steps people take to comfort themselves and move on from their own personal traumas.
The cast is made up of a number of non-professional, local actors from the film’s setting. The major exception is The Bear’s Jeremy Allen White in a small but pivotal role late in the film. The true find here though is Anaita Wali Zada as Donya. She never overplays her scenes which nicely suits the reality of the character. Most of her development occurs internally. On the outside Donya appears a bit stoic and unaffected but as the plot advances Zada slowly lets the character’s emotions out which reveals a sense of her inner life. It’s a wonderful first-time performance.
The film’s visual look and production values are modest due in part to its low budget. It was shot in black and white using standard 4:3 aspect ratio. Camera angles are static and takes are long. None of this reflects a weakness to the film though. It allows us to focus on Donya and the somewhat dreary atmosphere in which she finds herself.
Ultimately it is the script that really stands out. Exploring loneliness, distraction, and taking chances, viewers will likely find many ideas with which to connect to here. This is a film worth thinking and talking about. If you let it unfold at its own pace you’re in for a real moving treat.
Fremont premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. It opens today at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago.
FILM: FREMONT
DIRECTED BY: BABAK JALALI
STARRING: ANAITA WALI ZADA, JEREMY ALLEN WHITE, GREGG TURKINGTON
RATING: 3 ½ out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
There are not a lot of screenplays that pack as many ideas in their first acts as Fremont does. Writer/director Babak Jalali sets up a deeply layered character story of a young Afghan woman, Donya, who previously served as a translator for the U.S. Army. She is now a few months into her job as a fortune cookie maker in Fremont, California. Donya is played by first time actor Anaita Wali Zada who herself is an immigrant from Afghanistan and, like the character, speaks broken English but clearly understands how to get by and read the people in her new world.
The fortune cookie factory reflects the film’s central exploration of the various ways people attempt to find answers and make sense out of their lives. We all know people who anxiously await the “fortune” inside such cookies but how many really hope to gain from them an answer or direction? Many of the characters in the film want a change but how they attempt to accomplish it varies. One of Donya’s co-workers tries to find love through blind dates. Another suggests going to a palm reader for advice. Donya seeks out a psychiatrist to prescribe sleeping pills. She believes that any troubles she has will go away if she just has enough sleep. Her boss also buys her a head massager to stimulate new creative ideas. Eventually Donya must make a choice to remain in her current life or to take a chance on change.
The film also features characters either taking stimulants, whether it be cigarettes or coffee, or keeping themselves comforted by watching a TV series, playing video games, or in the case of Donya’s psychiatrist, reading the same book (Jack London’s White Fang) over and over. Everyone needs something to get them through their days. The film never judges the approaches used but objectively presents them as coping mechanisms people employ to solve their various questions and ills.
Fremont is a quiet, philosophical film rather than one that might be deemed “entertaining.” Yet, it’s messages ring loud and clear. There isn’t a wasted scene or character here for they all reveal the various steps people take to comfort themselves and move on from their own personal traumas.
The cast is made up of a number of non-professional, local actors from the film’s setting. The major exception is The Bear’s Jeremy Allen White in a small but pivotal role late in the film. The true find here though is Anaita Wali Zada as Donya. She never overplays her scenes which nicely suits the reality of the character. Most of her development occurs internally. On the outside Donya appears a bit stoic and unaffected but as the plot advances Zada slowly lets the character’s emotions out which reveals a sense of her inner life. It’s a wonderful first-time performance.
The film’s visual look and production values are modest due in part to its low budget. It was shot in black and white using standard 4:3 aspect ratio. Camera angles are static and takes are long. None of this reflects a weakness to the film though. It allows us to focus on Donya and the somewhat dreary atmosphere in which she finds herself.
Ultimately it is the script that really stands out. Exploring loneliness, distraction, and taking chances, viewers will likely find many ideas with which to connect to here. This is a film worth thinking and talking about. If you let it unfold at its own pace you’re in for a real moving treat.
Fremont premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. It opens today at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago.