In this compelling and beautifully realized Iranian film directed by Dariush Mehrjui, Leila (Leila Hatami) and Reza (Ali Mosafa) make a very attractive couple. Recently married and very much in love, they live in an elegant house in Teheran. Then Leila finds out that she is infertile, and various treatments fail to alter their prospects for having children. Reza assures her that he is happy with their life and doesn't really want children. But his domineering mother (Jamileh Sheikhi), who is determined to have a male heir in the family, begins a campaign to convince Leila to allow Reza to take a second wife.
Much of the suffering in our lives is self-inflicted. We sign up for pain. This harrowing process is vividly presented here as Leila becomes a compliant tool of her mother-in-law's plan. Through one concession after another, she sabotages her own marriage. The self-blaming part of her believes that she deserves to be punished for being infertile. The insecure part can't be convinced that Reza means what he says about not needing a woman to bear his children. The private side won't allow her to confide in her own supportive family. And the part of Leila that knows the deep feelings in her heart emerges far too late.
Mehrjui unravels this drama slowly, enabling us to observe the various changes all the main characters go through as Reza meets a series of candidates for his second wife. Leila is a richly developed psychodrama that reveals the crucial role self-esteem plays in our relationships.