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Sadly Over-hyped

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Directed by Ghobadi, this film was set in Northern Iran. The film follows two major conflicts, one being Mirza's struggle to find his ex-wife Hanareh and the other is the Kurds ability to deal with attacks from Iraq while still trying to maintain a normal life. To build up to these ideas the director gives us a lot of random scenes which I feel do nothing to build on the movies plots. First the director shows the men being robbed of everything, which seems pointless to add to the film since I feel it does nothing to enhance the plot. Next, we see that the men stop in a town to enquire about Hanareh's whereabouts and they end up playing there instruments in a wedding while a jealous man shots up the place. Events such as these coupled with how the director uses camera shot which dwarf the actors and enhance the landscape, shows a different style of directing and storyline then our Western culture is use to. Given where the director is from and his experience he does a great job filming and adding political symbolism into the film. His symbolism displays to the viewers that the Kurds will not allow themselves to be effected by Iraqi attacks. This scene is displayed when Mirza while carrying a toddler on his back steps over the barbed wire boarder between Iraq and Iran with no problem at all. These aspects of the film make it an interesting film to watch since it gives the viewer a good feel for Kurdish life and landscape, but the film I feel lacks and overall message.

Director Bahman Ghobadi of Marooned in Iraq does a good job of showing the everyday life of the nomadic Kurds under the chaotic rule of Saddam Hussein but perhaps Ghobadi forgot he was making a movie not a documentary. Outside of the last thirty minutes, this movie is poorly put together. Missing subtitles, pointless scenes, unintentional humor, and random characters plague this film.Within the first twenty minutes the entire plot is given away leaving the middle to be nothing but unintentional humor with a few bumps along the way. The overall seriousness of the film was cast aside by the humor of the not so bright Barat, and the bumbling Audeh. From Barat not being able to speak to women, and Audeh wanting a son so bad that he'll ask anyone for their hand in marriage, the subplot is almost meaningless. While this kept the movie moderately entertaining, the light hearted side of the film is forgotten once Mirza reaches the area in which Hanareh is supposed to be. The honest scenes of mass graves and weeping women are just all too surreal once it's on screen. It is these last scenes in the movie that really take it to another level and is completely unexpected with what the viewer is being shown throughout the earlier parts of the film.Overall this film is fairly enjoyable with many problem areas such as editing, subtitles and overall meaning of the film. The first twenty and last thirty minutes are the only needed parts of film; the rest merely seems to be filler to create a whole film. The closing scenes will take your breath, but it still begs the question of whether it makes up for having to watch the not-so-worth-it middle parts. This film is far from anything Hollywood especially the ending and therefore I would not recommend this for the average American movie-goer. If anyone is interested in the life of Kurds or anyone living during the Iran-Iraq War, this film will certainly enlighten you.

This Iranian-Kurdish film is a touching story that is not only emotionally sad at times, but it also includes some comedic views as well. This film might be one of the few movies I have seen that I felt like crying and laughing at the same time. In experiencing two Middle Eastern films now, I have learned just how interesting Muslim cultures are. This movie shows the events that happen in Iran and Iraq that Americans do not see in daily life. Marooned in Iraq tells of a famous family of musicians who set out to find the father Mirza's ex wife because of news that she is in trouble. On their journey, each one encounters an unexpected event. The director suggests the Will of God as the reasoning behind these events. The ending is left for the audience's imagination. The director gives us hints, but it's up to us to decide what happens to the family. The Director I believe wanted to show outsiders of the Middle East that Iran and Iraq are not exactly as one may see. The director chose to show a lot of scenery by using camera angles that made the characters look tiny compared to their surroundings. I never realized how beautiful of a place Iran is, minus the destruction. I also think the director chose to film during winter to symbolize the hard journey that the family has ahead of them. If he chose to film in the summer or spring, the scenery would be too pretty to show the actual mood the director was looking for. I truly enjoyed this movie because it gave me a different perspective on Middle Eastern culture that I was unaware of before. I also really enjoyed the fact that I felt a sense of sadness and at the same time laughter from the beginning of the movie until the very end. I believe audiences who think they know everything that's going on in the Middle East should view this film so they can get a better understanding of what's really going on in Iran and Iraq. Since watching this film my thoughts have changed dramatically about the culture and the people of the Middle East. I would say for sure this film is worth viewing and I would recommend it to audiences who are willing to look beyond news and television broadcasts.

What distorts viewers like these who write about this film? Touching? Yes, by boredom. Heh, it not that I'm not caring about people, the Kurds, but this movie besides the interesting mountains & some music, which is repetitive, there was nothing much else of interest. It's subtitles besides. I didn't know that in that language you'd have to say so many words, & have so little meaning from saying so much. No money to make a more polished film means you hear so many jets that are suppose to be flying over, but they are never there, except for once very far away. This film is about cruelty & inhumanity against man (& women too). Depressing to some easily influenced & who lose their sense of self & boundaries. The ending is no better.