The Burden of Being

Hamza, a powerful county landowner killed a hardworking villager named Ahmet. Soon after this incident, Ahmet's son, Ali, shot the landowner to death. Ali was imprisoned for 12 years before being released and then, in his turn, chased by the landowner's children...

A gangster escapes jail and quickly makes plans to continue his criminal ways elsewhere, but a determined inspector is closing in.

A strange mortician tells four horrific tales to three drug dealers that he traps in their local funeral parlor.

Seven short films - each one focused on the plight of a different child protagonist.

A young man who was sentenced to 7 years in prison for robbing a post office ends up spending 30 years in solitary confinement. During this time, his own personality is supplanted by his alter ego, Charles Bronson.

The story of five teenage girls who form an unlikely bond after beating up a teacher who has sexually harassed them. They build a solid friendship but their wild ways begin to get out of control.

Five star (hotel) is a sarcastic reference to the Pretoria prison which is central to the plot. An inmate Skollie (A nickname meaning delinquent) escapes from jail with one desire, to be united with his son again. Life outside is much different to what Skollie remembers. Still behind bars are inmates Pappa, Priester and Polka, who are doing everything to prevent Skollie from being reunited with his son, even if that means they have to kill. Skollie discovers that Pappa might be responsible for the death of his mother and he vows revenge.

The plot revolves around three men waiting to be deported in a prison. To escape the monotony, they form chess pieces from their bread rations, with which they then play against each other. Grünstein, a Polish Jew, proves to be a real talent, because although he is a beginner, he manages to defeat even the experienced player Lodeck, a German sailor, with his "Grünstein Variant".

Imprisoned as an accessory to murder, Catherine gives birth to a son she conceived in prison. Eighteen years later, her sentence served, she is reunited with the boy, Simon, who has remained in an orphanage the entire time. She is accompanied by toothsome prison buddy Sarah, and gradually these people whose lives have been frozen in time "thaw" and get on with the business of living.

Valeh, a member of a leftist organization, is arrested by the SAVAK and sentenced to death. In prison, he reconsiders his relationships with members of his political cell, and begins to doubt the validity of the ideas for which he is condemned. At the same time, his comrades pressure him to make a sacrifice for their cause, and his beloved wife experiences personal problems and economic hardships.

A frustrated man decides to take justice into his own hands after a plea bargain sets one of his family's killers free. He targets not only the killer but also the district attorney and others involved in the deal.