The Cyclist

For the verse drama by Paul Goodman, see The Cyclist (play).

The Cyclist (Persian: بايسيكلران, romanized: Bicycleran) is a 1987 Iranian sports-drama film written and directed by Mohsen Makhmalbaf, starring Moharram Zaynalzadeh as Abu Ahmed.

The Cyclist
Directed by	Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Written by	Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Cinematography	Ali Reza Zarrindast
Edited by	Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Music by	Majid Entezami
Production company	Bonyad Mostazafan
Distributed by	Filmarti Cinéma Public Films Facets Multimedia Distribution Kino Video
Release date	1987 (1987)
Running time	82 minutes
Country	Iran
Language	Persian

Plot

Full movie

Nasim, a poor Afghan refugee in Iran, gives a demonstration in his town's square, during which he rides his bicycle without stopping for seven days and seven nights, with the aim of raising money to pay for life-saving surgery for his dying wife. In the end, even after seven days, he continues to pedal endlessly, too fatigued to hear his son's and the crowd's pleas to get off his bicycle.^[1] One scholar analyses the film as an allegory which depicts the exploitation that Afghan refugees suffer from in Iran and from which they are unable to escape.^[2]

Accolades

In 1991 the film won the best narrative film award in the Hawaii International Film Festival.^[3]

See also

• List of films about bicycles and cycling