I watched this movie last night, amidst the 2022 Iran protests. Right now, Iranian women and men are standing together, taking to the streets and protesting against the mullahs (clerics) regime, chanting "Women, Life, Freedom". In return, they're getting shot and killed by security and militia (Basiji) forces under the direct command of the "Supreme Leader", who himself is a mullah.
It is therefore maddening how this movie paints the picture of the Iranian people vs mullahs. The only time we see people protesting in the movie is when they're chanting outside the court, asking for the release of Saeed, the religious psychopath who killed 16 women in cold blood. The people were portrayed supporting the "cleansing of streets" not giving a damn about the serial killings.
Moreover, the protagonist, Zahra, was so eager to see the imprisoned Saeed tortured by primitive Islamic rules, making sure that his lashing decree was executed before he was hanged. This is again in stark contrast with what the Iranian people and social activists have been trying to achieve throughout the Islamic Republic era, which has been the elimination of such barbaric measures as lashing and hanging.
On the other hand, the mullah judge, was portrayed as this reasonable, educated and respectable character who was concerned about social problems and would keep his word (on executing Saeed, however heinous the act was) even under pressure from public opinion. Again, mullahs in Iran are not what the movie tries to depict. People do not respect them (there's currently a flying turban challenge on the streets of Iran, where people grab mullahs' turbans from their heads and throw them away). People do not ask for their opinion. They are not educated; the current "appointed" (not elected) Iranian president, Raeisi, has only been to school for 6 years. And they're anything but reasonable; all their reasoning stem from the backwards Sharia laws.
All in all, I was really disappointed by the movie. All this movie is doing for the non-Iranian audience, is portraying the Iranian people in such a grotesque manner that would discourage the audience to follow up with the current freedom protests in Iran.
It is therefore maddening how this movie paints the picture of the Iranian people vs mullahs. The only time we see people protesting in the movie is when they're chanting outside the court, asking for the release of Saeed, the religious psychopath who killed 16 women in cold blood. The people were portrayed supporting the "cleansing of streets" not giving a damn about the serial killings.
Moreover, the protagonist, Zahra, was so eager to see the imprisoned Saeed tortured by primitive Islamic rules, making sure that his lashing decree was executed before he was hanged. This is again in stark contrast with what the Iranian people and social activists have been trying to achieve throughout the Islamic Republic era, which has been the elimination of such barbaric measures as lashing and hanging.
On the other hand, the mullah judge, was portrayed as this reasonable, educated and respectable character who was concerned about social problems and would keep his word (on executing Saeed, however heinous the act was) even under pressure from public opinion. Again, mullahs in Iran are not what the movie tries to depict. People do not respect them (there's currently a flying turban challenge on the streets of Iran, where people grab mullahs' turbans from their heads and throw them away). People do not ask for their opinion. They are not educated; the current "appointed" (not elected) Iranian president, Raeisi, has only been to school for 6 years. And they're anything but reasonable; all their reasoning stem from the backwards Sharia laws.
All in all, I was really disappointed by the movie. All this movie is doing for the non-Iranian audience, is portraying the Iranian people in such a grotesque manner that would discourage the audience to follow up with the current freedom protests in Iran.