You may leave your country and physically be in Canada and in this case Sahar (Pegah Ghafoori) has left Iran to pursue her studies in Vancouver, British Columbia but her mother remains behind.
Sahar is far from a perfect example of a women the ayatollah theocracy blesses and without headscarf would she be the next Masha Amini? Sahar may have escaped enforced purity to be here but her mother she holds dear is there.
Sahar writes an article critical of how women are treated in Iran and attends a protest in Vancouver against the Iranian leadership sanctioned murder of the “impure” Masha Amini. She is photographed and her visage appears in an article in a local Iranian newspaper about the protest and matters take a turn for the worse.
Her mother and her uncle Hekmat there feel retribution from the authorities may be forthcoming. The eyes of the regime rove beyond Iran! There is some nasty business with Sahar’s late father’s interest in a business and Hekmat is not above suspicion as a swindler. Sahar awaits funds from the sale of her father’s interest in the business as tuition is due and failure to pay will end in revocation of her right to remain in Canada. Sahar loses her job in an Iranian grocery store run by another uncle as clients are both pro and anti regime and a rabble rouser like Sahar will offend the pro regime customers.
Poor Sahar is so far from home yet threatened by the regime’s toadies and by a family swindle.
Despite a personal tragedy Sahar realizes she must wash her eyes and begin to see things differently and takes a irrevocable step in that direction.
A powerful and flawless performance by Ghafoori but the screenplay leaves a few annoyances to deal with. Why the repeated shots of Sahar dancing and that floating in the pool scene. A simplistic reference to freedom? And the graffiti loving child who is a self-proclaimed witch. What is the purpose of this “deep and mysterious” child?
Directed by Sepideh Yadegar. A somewhat simplistic film and a far cry from a Jafar Panahi film.
RKS 2024 Film Rating: 67/100.
World premiering at the Oakville Film Festival 22June2024.
Set the Bar 