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Too much of everything

A Disappointing Continuation

There are women in the film, but none has anything you could call a personality.

Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

It's not just Farhadi Iranian films is best at portraying protagonists who are very flawed that even while you are rooting for them it's impossible to blame other characters either. But surely takes a political stand that seem to have pi**ed of a lot in Iran especially because the director is a woman. Very hard to sit through but very much worth it.

Let me start by saying that this is not an "easy" movie. One lady in the cinema said at the end that she was "feeling overwhelmed" while watching it. I agree, there is a kind of oppressive atmosphere in this movie. Sometimes it is more tangible, and some other times is less explicit, but it is always there. Nahid is a divorced Iranian woman that has to deal with a tough situation: she is in love with a man, but marrying to him will mean that she loses the custody of her son (this is Iranian law). She doesn't know how to deal with it, and she cannot completely make her mind. She feels oppressed, by an ex-husband that has been neglecting her for many years, by a son that doesn't respect her, by a landlord that doesn't let her stay more time, by a society that looks down at her... and by herself, who sometimes can be her own worst enemy.The director nicely presents us this slice-of-life, in which the different actors play very well and credibly their respective roles. Maybe the roles of the two men are a little bit clichéd, but overall the acting is good. Everything transitions smoothly, and the photography and music are smartly crafted to nicely present the different scenes that take place in this observed domestic drama.Nahid is a nice window into the life of a woman in the Iranian society, but it is also a sensitive reflection about the dilemmas and crises that we have to face during our life, independently of our culture.

There are some truly great Iranian directors but Ida Panahandeh is not one of them. This is a dreadful movie that rambles on and on in a series of gray predictable clichés that lack either depth or humour. The lead actress has no understanding of her ridiculous character, which does not help as she is on screen most of the time. I was once told that women have no ability to direct. I do not think this is true. But Ida sure has helped to prove it right. The one high spot is the performance by the lead's first husband, who brings to his part a sense of credibility. If you are Iranian and like a slice of Iranian make-believe life on your screen, this might well be the film you are looking for. B feature pap for the rest of us.