A study on the representation of death in Abbas Kiarostami's cinema on the concept of death in Heidegger's thought

The relation between film and philosophy is one of the relations that has always been considered by film theorists and philosophers. In other words, the film's ability in displaying philosophical concepts and philosophical thinking through films is one of the most significant case studies in this field. Martin Heidegger can be considered as the greatest philosopher of the twentieth century. His interest in art and its usage to indicate concepts such as Existence, makes Heidegger a distinguished figure among his contemporaries. But his thoughts about death and non-being versus existence are very interesting and worthy of attention. Heidegger considers death to be one of the most important abilities of Dasein and believes that it is only with death that Dasein can think of itself as a whole. Abbas Kiarostami is one of the directors who has received diverse readings on his movies and each of them has demonstrated the richness of his works more than before. Death is one of the concepts that apears in Kiarostami's most important works. It can be clearly seen in movies such as Koker Trilogy and Taste of Cherry. Kiarostami's different outlook and point of view, unique use of stylistic and thematic elements, the way of narrating the story and the way in which characters confront death have led this concept to go beyond its apparent meaning in his movies.This research by examining the most important and fundamental elements of understanding the concept of death in Heidegger's philosophy, namely Dasein, anxiety or fear-consciousness, fall and authenticity, death and the meaning of life in Abbas Kiarostami's cinema, indicates that all the elements related to death in Heidegger's philosophy can be traced in Kiarostami’s exemplary movies, Taste of Cherry and The Wind Will Carry Us; and a reading of Kiarostami's works through Heidegger's philosophy can be offered. In other words, the concept of death in Kiarostami's works is completely applicable to the concepts of Heidegger's philosophy. Taste of Cherry depicts the movement towards death and the diret encounter with it through the character; on the other hand, in The Wind will Carry Us, all the elements related to death in Heidegger’s philosophy appear gradually through the progress of the plot.