These are must-watch Iranian movies for anyone looking to know more about Iranian cinema.

My journey with Iranian and diaspora film has been a slow one throughout the years. I worked professionally as a film critic at a major outlet, but a lot of the movies from the Asian world I covered would come out of Korea and Japan, and if we had any that were released from the Middle East, it would be a Turkish movie at a film festival.

It took some time, but I’ve been really going more into Iranian cinema lately, especially as a grapple with what it means to be a member of the Iranian diaspora during such a volatile time. People don’t really learn Farsi, unless, in the American context, they want to work for specific branches of the government. Iranian publishing and film are also so isolated and sometimes censored that the stories and narratives that are very interesting and thought provoking are shoved back down to the bottom of the pile.

All of this said, let me introduce myself real fast: my name is Ashley, and I am an Iranian American writer. I’ve spent a lot of my life in the United States and grappling with what people think about Iranians and the misconceptions the media puts out there.

At the time of typing this, the war with Iran has begun again, and I wanted to make more lists about Iranian film and books because I’m passionate about our voices and representation. It’s difficult to have access to them to begin with, but as other people speak over us, we need these kinds of movies, art, and books more than ever.

With that said, today’s blog post is on Iranian movies that every movie lover should see at least once. Or, if you’re interested in Iranian cinema, these are a great start!

A Separation, directed by Asghar Farhadi

Asghar Farhadi is one of the best-known directors in the Western world, and it’s because in 2012 he became the first Iranian to win the Oscar for Best International Feature Film. It was specifically for A Separation, which is still one of his best movies to date.

In this film, it focuses on the brutal separation of an Iranian couple are solidly middle class. Their class plays a role in what’s unfolding, as you’ll see in the movie, but we particularly see the impact of their spats and arguments on their young daughter.

Another big conflict emerges when the husband decides to higher someone who is lower class to care for his father, which leads to even more issues and arguments between the couple.

Chess of the Wind, directed by Mohammad Reza Aslani

Chess of the Wind is a unique movie in Iranian film history, as it was made shortly before the Iranian Revolution, then was banned during it. The film was later rediscovered decades later and restored, making it more accessible to watch nowadays—I saw it through the Criterion Channel, as I have that subscription.

This movie is about a decaying aristocratic family. When the matriarch dies, it creates a power vacuum, as her disabled daughter fears that her stepfather is going to take everything. In Iranian culture, this is usually the case—the men historically tend to be the ones with power.

With this point of friction in mind, she navigates attempting to kill her stepfather with her beloved servant, but discovers that things aren’t as easy as they seem, especially when his sons live in the household with them.

There is No Evil, directed by Mohammad Rasoulof

Released in 2020, I distinctly remember watching this movie, when I had a MUBI subscription at the time, while having a fight with my father. He still sat there on the couch and watched the movie with me.

That said, this is a movie that’s split into four different tales and perspectives. In the first one, a man navigates ordinary life in Iran with his wife and kids, but then we discover how exactly he’s complicit in the system that oppresses so many in the country.

The second story features an Iranian soldier debating with his bunkmates the morals of some of the things they’re doing, while the third one is about a man who realizes he executed his girlfriend’s beloved friend, as he was an activist. The final story is about a university student who discovers a major secret when she visits her aunt and uncle.

Children of Heaven, directed by Majid Majidi

Children of Heaven was released in 1997, but the themes it brings up in its story are highly relevant today, especially as much of Iran continues to struggle with poverty under sanctions.

The movie focuses on a brother and sister, both of who are very young. When the brother loses his sister’s shoes, he embarks on a journey throughout the course of the movie to try and get them back, or, at least, try to get her a new pair that she will love just as much.

But as he’ll learn, some things in life are more difficult than they seem.

Holy Spider, directed by Ali Abbasi

Holy Spider is one of those movies that when it was released, it caused a big backlash in Iran itself and was banned by the government. Seeing what it’s about, it’s not shocking that they were so upset by it. It was based on real murders that took place in Mashhad, many of which were supported by the more religious folks in Iran.

In the movie though, a female journalist arrives in Mashhad. She wants to cover the events that have been happening there lately: a serial killer has been targeting prostitutes and women who live on the streets, and this killer has been supported under the notion that he’s “cleaning up the trash.”

As the journalist digs deeper, she realizes how complicated this case is in Iranian society, especially when it comes to perception and how people don’t want to be associated with “sinful acts.”

The Salesman, directed by Asghar Farhadi

The Salesman is the movie that won Farhadi his second Oscar, and it was well-deserved at the time. This is a movie that utilizes the play Death of a Salesman as a narrative crux, as the characters are working on an Iranian production of the play for the public in Tehran.

The main plot of this movie is this: a couple, both of whom are actors, are forced to live in another apartment after their original apartment building starts collapsing. They move into a temporary accommodation, but when the man is out one night, his partner is sexually assaulted while in the shower.

As she’s now traumatized, he takes it upon himself to try and go see who the perpetrator is. Thus begins a complicated relationship with the Iranian legal system as they try to work on their theatrical production at the same time.

Close-Up, directed by Abbas Kiarostami

It would be wrong to make one of these lists and not include the original titan of Iranian cinema: Kiarostami. I also wanted to include some other movies on the list though that aren’t often given as much as a spotlight as his work has.

Close-Up is widely regarded as one of his best movies, and there are plenty of good reasons for that. The movie is about a man who convinces a family that he’s a famous film director in Iran, and with his funding and resources, he’s going to make a movie starring them.

That said, there’s only going to be so long before his ruse is discovered, and when it is, that leads to a series of events that truly makes for a work of cinema. Combined with Kiarostami’s poetic and gentle touch, that makes this a movie definitely worth watching at least once!

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