Iran, about the size of Alaska, is a complex country with a terrain that ranges from mountains to broad plains and a population made up of many different ethnic groups who live in large cities and small villages. Iranian films have touched on many aspects of daily life, including the challenges of poverty, women's rights, and modernization, and in our reviews we look at them from the perspective of what they reveal about the spiritual life of beauty, grace, love, meaning, shadow, and other practices. We heartily recommend all of these films; most of them are now available on DVD:

  • The Apple: A celebration of freedom and a severe critique of the continued shabby treatment of women in patriarchial societies.
  • Baran: A story of Afghan refugees living in Iran that demonstrates the alchemical process whereby an enemy is transformed into a friend.
  • Blackboards: The journey of two itinerant school teachers looking for students in Iranian Kurdistan where war has savaged the lives and liberties of the poor.
  • Children of Heaven: A cross-cultural masterpiece that touches the heart and reveals the universality of familial love and the determination of children to make do even in the most dire circumstances.
  • The Circle: A riveting drama set in modern-day Teheran showing how a group of women, severely constrained by the patriarchy, religion, and custom, nevertheless nurture their souls with the tonic of freedom.
  • The Color of Paradise: A convincing spiritual parable about an eight-year-old blind boy that illustrates the bounties of grace and the emptiness of life not filled with gratitude to God.
  • Crimson Gold: A portrait of contemporary urban Iran where harsh totalitarian measures are used against citizens and where the chasm between the haves and the have-nots is gigantic.
  • The Day I Became a Woman: A classic with universal appeal that, with unvarnished simplicity and metaphoric richness, conveys the yearning of women at three different stages of their lives.
  • Gabbeh: A poetic and picturesque movie set in the Iranian countryside that celebrates the gnarled beauty of the natural world, the art of weaving, and the unique ways that story gives life shape and meaning.
  • Gradually . . . : The story of a butcher whose wife leaves home under mysterious conditions and whose fate reveals the terrible treatment of women in a repressive religious society.
  • Hamoun: A portrait of the midlife crisis of a self-absorbed writer who can't accept or understand why his wife, a successful painter, wants to divorce him.
  • Iran: A Cinematographic Revolution: A rounded and robust overview of Iranian cinema and its shifting relationship to the political and religious tides in that country's history and culture.
  • Iron Island: A clever and thought-provoking fable about Iran and the universal struggle to survive, set on an oil tanker in the Persian Gulf.
  • Leila: A richly developed psychodrama about an infertile married woman in Tehran who is asked to agree to her husband taking a second wife; the story reveals the crucial role self-esteem plays in our relationships.
  • The Mirror: A view of urban Tehran through the eyes of a curious and independent child taking a long bus ride home.
  • Mystic Iran: The Unseen World: Presents one woman's amazing spiritual encounters with Muslim believers, Zoroastrians, and Sufi dervishes in the hinterlands of this country once known as Persia.
  • Offside: A funny, poignant, and jubilant film about some passionate female soccer fans in Tehran that ends with a mystical moment of oneness.
  • Persepolis: An animated autobiographical masterpiece about one Iranian woman's intense quest for the holy grail of freedom — one of the most imaginative and important films of 2007.
  • Secret Ballot: A playful parable, set on a small Iranian island, about freedom and the need for openness wherever people are experimenting with democracy.
  • Smell of Camphor, Fragrance of Jasmine: A compelling drama, based upon the director's own experiences, about the mini-deaths that can be rehearsals for the great performance at the end of life.
  • The Silence: An exquisitely beautiful and touching film about a blind boy's adventures with music.
  • The Song of Sparrows: A gem about spiritual renewal told through the story of a former ostrich farmer who becomes a taxi driver in the city, a choice that affects his family life.
  • The Stoning of Soraya M.: Graphically depicts the horrors inflicted on an innocent woman in an Iranian village, the result of a fatal combination of a patriarchal society, tribal traditions, and Islamic fundamentalism.
  • Ten: A wonderful parable on inner peace conveyed through a pioneering use of digital video — ten scenes shot in a moving car through the streets of modern day Teheran.
  • A Time for Drunken Horses: A touching story about some poverty-stricken children who demonstrate self-sacrificial love as they assume adult responsibilities on their small shoulders.
  • The White Balloon: A totally delightful film, set around the Iranian New Year, filled with colorful characters and wry observations on the interactions of children and adults.
  • The Willow Tree: A spiritual masterpiece on gratitude, transformation and surrender to God; Rumi would love it!
  • The Wind Will Carry Us: The experiences of a filmmaker who goes to a remote village to film a folk ritual and discovers the preciousness of being truly present in this enchanting world.
  • Under the Skin of the City: A poignant story of a hard working and strong-willed mother in contemporary Teheran who demonstrates big-hearted courage.