Saagar Kote
Iran is an ancient civilization with a rich history of art, poetry, and architecture. Persian literature is often recognized for its lingering questions on humanity and the purpose of life. The film industry of Iran is known for its originality, grit, and focus on socially relevant themes. Iranian cinema explores themes such as the mundanity of life, women’s rights, the art of filmmaking under restrictions, political principles, theological questions, and more. Filmmakers like Abbas Kiarostami, Asghar Farhadi, Jafar Panahi, Majid Majidi, and several others have been instrumental in delivering cinematic excellence and shedding light on Iranian society in all its complexities.
As the language of cinema changes and bold filmmaking styles emerge, Iranian cinema continues to reinvent itself in the 21st century. With the Jafar Panahi directorial ‘It Was Just an Accident’ garnering massive critical acclaim and numerous international award nominations, Iranian cinema is more relevant than ever. In this list, we bring you Iranian movies streaming on Netflix and HBO Max that will keep you hooked.
3. Under the Shadow (2016)
Directed by Babak Anvari, ‘Under the Shadow’ takes place in Tehran during the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s. It is the story of Shideh (Narges Rashidi), a former leftist medical student, who stays with her husband, Iraj (Bobby Naderi), and their daughter, Dorsa (Avin Manshadi). When Iraj is deployed for military service, Shideh insists on staying in their apartment with their daughter, Dorsa, despite the latter’s escalating fear of Djinns. The situation worsens when Dorsa’s doll, Kimia, vanishes. A missile strike causes their neighbors to evacuate, yet Shideh and Dorsa stay in the house. As Dorsa becomes increasingly distressed, Shideh ultimately realizes that an evil entity inhabits the apartment, posing a danger to Dorsa unless she can locate Kimia. The Persian-language British horror movie is an engaging and unpredictable tale streaming on Netflix.
2. Holy Spider (2022)
‘Holy Spider’ is the story of a female journalist named Arezoo Rahimi (Zar Amir Ebrahimi), who arrives in the Iranian city of Mashhad, known for its religious significance. The city sees a series of brutal killings of sex workers, leading to media frenzy and speculation. Arezoo intends to find out the truth about the killings before more women die. In the shadows, Saeed (Mehdi Bajestani), a building contractor, murders sex workers, believing he is cleansing the holy city of sin.
Despite Saeed calling the press after each crime, the police fail to catch him. As Saeed’s reign of terror reaches new heights, Arezoo is the only one who can expose his truth to the public and law enforcement. Helmed by Ali Abbasi, the narrative is a deep dive into the mind of a criminal and the sacrifices of a journalist relentlessly pursuing him. Inspired by true events, the Persian-language Danish crime thriller is available here.
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1. Taste of Cherry (1997)
‘Taste of Cherry’ or ‘Ta’m e guilass’ chronicles a difficult day in the life of a man named Badii (Homayoun Ershadi). With a clear intent of killing himself by the end of the day, Badii travels to Tehran to find someone who would be willing to bury him after his death for a good sum of money. He first approaches a young soldier who runs away, given the strange nature of the request. Badii then crosses paths with a religious man who lectures him on guilt but refuses to help. Finally, an old teacher agrees to the job but tries to convince Badii not to surrender to death. As he meets these individuals who show him different sides of life, Badii’s decision gets more difficult. Directed by Abbas Kiarostami, the story is a poignant and puzzling commentary on the beauty, terror, and value of the human soul. The Persian-language Iranian drama is streaming on HBO Max.
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