IMDb: Great Iranian films that anyone must see

1.

Close-Up (1990)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.2/10 X

Pretending to be Mohsen Makhmalbaf making his next movie, Hossain Sabzian enters the home of a well-to-do family in Tehran... (98 mins.)

Director: Abbas Kiarostami

Stars: Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Hossain Sabzian, Abolfazl Ahankhah, Mehrdad Ahankhah

2.

Mother (1991)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.6/10 X

How a mother acts in the hardest parts of her, and her children's lives. (108 mins.)

Director: Ali Hatami

Stars: Rogheyeh Chehreh-Azad, Mohamad Ali Keshavarz, Farimah Farjami, Amin Tarokh

3.

A Separation (2011)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.4/10 X

A married couple are faced with a difficult decision - to improve the life of their child by moving to another country or to stay in Iran and look after a deteriorating parent who has Alzheimer's disease. (123 mins.)

Director: Asghar Farhadi

Stars: Peyman Moaadi, Leila Hatami, Sareh Bayat, Shahab Hosseini

4.

Children of Heaven (1997)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.5/10 X

After a boy loses his sister's pair of shoes, he goes on a series of adventures in order to find them. When he can't, he tries a new way to "win" a new pair. (89 mins.)

Director: Majid Majidi

Stars: Mohammad Amir Naji, Amir Farrokh Hashemian, Bahare Seddiqi, Nafise Jafar-Mohammadi

5.

Hamoun (1990)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.2/10 X

Hamoon's wife is leaving him. He is also unsuccessfully trying to finish his Ph.D. thesis. He is forced to reexamine his life... (120 mins.)

Director: Dariush Mehrjui

Stars: Ezzatolah Entezami, Bita Farahi, Sedigheh Kianfar, Turan Mehrzad

6.

Turtles Can Fly (2004)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.1/10 X

Near the Iraqi-Turkish border on the eve of an American invasion, refugee children like 13-year-old Kak (Ebrahim), gauge and await their fate. (98 mins.)

Director: Bahman Ghobadi

Stars: Soran Ebrahim, Avaz Latif, Saddam Hossein Feysal, Hiresh Feysal Rahman

7.

Bashu, the Little Stranger (1989)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.1/10 X

Lost and left behind in a foreign country after running away, a little boy whose family have been killed during the war is saved and trained by a middle-aged woman. (120 mins.)

Director: Bahram Beizai

Stars: Susan Taslimi, Parviz Poorhosseini, Adnan Afravian, Bashu

8.

About Elly (2009)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.1/10 X

The mysterious disappearance of a kindergarten teacher during a picnic in the north of Iran is followed by a series of misadventures for her fellow travelers. (119 mins.)

Director: Asghar Farhadi

Stars: Golshifteh Farahani, Shahab Hosseini, Taraneh Alidoosti, Merila Zare'i

9.

The Brick and the Mirror (1965)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X

Hashem (Zakariya Hashemi) is a cab driver who finds an infant child in the back seat of his cab one nigjt after he gives a ride to a young woman... (131 mins.)

Director: Ebrahim Golestan

Stars: Taji Ahmadi, Zackaria Hashemi, Goli Bozorgmehr, Masoud Faghih

10.

Taste of Cherry (1997)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.7/10 X

An Iranian man drives his truck in search of someone who will quietly bury him under a cherry tree after he commits suicide. (95 mins.)

Director: Abbas Kiarostami

Stars: Homayoun Ershadi, Abdolrahman Bagheri, Afshin Khorshid Bakhtiari, Safar Ali Moradi

11.

Death of Yazdgerd (1982)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.5/10 X

(120 mins.)

Director: Bahram Beizai

Stars: Karim Akbari Mobarakeh, Yasaman Arami, Mahmoud Behrouzian, Mehdi Hashemi

12.

The Cow (1969)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.2/10 X

An old villager deeply in love with his cow goes to the capital for a while. While he's there, the cow dies and now the villagers are afraid of his possible reaction to it when he returns. (105 mins.)

Director: Dariush Mehrjui

Stars: Ezzatolah Entezami, Mahin Shahabi, Ali Nassirian, Jamshid Mashayekhi

13.

The Runner (1984)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.0/10 X

Amiro is a young boy who has lost his home during the war. He spends his days by working odd jobs, until... (94 mins.)

Director: Amir Naderi

Stars: Abbas Nazeri, Majid Niroumand, Musa Torkizadeh

14.

Where is the Friend's Home? (1987)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.1/10 X

An 8 year old boy must return his friend's notebook he took by mistake, lest his friend be punished by expulsion from school. (83 mins.)

Director: Abbas Kiarostami

Stars: Babek Ahmed Poor, Ahmed Ahmed Poor, Kheda Barech Defai, Iran Outari

15.

The House Is Black (1963 Documentary)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.0/10 X

Set in a leper colony in the north of Iran, The House is Black juxtaposes "ugliness," of which there is much in the world as stated in the opening scenes, with religion and gratitude. (20 mins.)

Director: Forugh Farrokhzad

Stars: Forugh Farrokhzad, Ebrahim Golestan, Hossein Mansouri

16.

A Moment of Innocence (1996)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.0/10 X

A semi-autobiographical account of Makmahlbaf's experience as a teenager when, as a 17-year-old, he stabbed a policeman at a protest rally. Two decades later, he tracks down the policeman he injured in an attempt to make amends. (78 mins.)

Director: Mohsen Makhmalbaf

Stars: Mirhadi Tayebi, Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Ali Bakhsi, Ammar Tafti Dehghan

17.

The Willow Tree (2005)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X

Youssef, a blind university professor, is suddenly diagnosed with a fatal disease and must undergo treatment in France. Back home, will he find the life he had before? (96 mins.)

Director: Majid Majidi

Stars: Parviz Parastui, Roya Taymourian, Afarin Obeisi, Mohammad Amir Naji

18.

Beautiful City (2004)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.9/10 X

Akbar has just turned eighteen. He has been held in a rehabilitation centre for committing murder at the age of sixteen when he was condemned to death... (101 mins.)

Director: Asghar Farhadi

Stars: Taraneh Alidoosti, Faramarz Gharibian, Babak Ansari, Hossein Farzi-Zadeh

19.

Still Life (1974)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.0/10 X

For more than three decades, aging Iranian Mohamad Sardari (Zadour Bonyadi) has worked as a crossing guard at a desolate train station... (93 mins.)

Director: Sohrab Shahid Saless

Stars: Zadour Bonyadi, Mohammed Kani, Hibibollah Safarian, Habib Safaryan

20.

Persepolis (2007)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.0/10 X

A precocious and outspoken Iranian girl grows up during the Islamic Revolution. (96 mins.)

Director: Vincent Paronnaud, Marjane Satrapi

Stars: Chiara Mastroianni, Catherine Deneuve, Gena Rowlands, Danielle Darrieux

21.

Desiderium (1978)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.5/10 X

Desiderium lyrically charts the hapless loves of a three brother: Majid, they young handicapped brother with a deformed head falls in love with Aghdas... (120 mins.)

Director: Ali Hatami

Stars: Behrouz Vossoughi, Jamshid Mashayekhi, Fakhri Khorvash, Shohreh Aghdashloo

22.

Ragbar (1972)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X

A well educated and humble teacher arrives in a new city and at a new job in the pre-revolutionary Iran... (128 mins.)

Director: Bahram Beizai

Stars: Parviz Fanizadeh, Mohamad Ali Keshavarz, Jamshid Layegh, Parvaneh Massoumi

23.

The Wind Will Carry Us (1999)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X

Irreverent city engineer Behzad comes to a rural village in Iran to keep vigil for a dying relative. In the meanwhile the film follows his efforts to fit in with the local community and how he changes his own attitudes as a result. (118 mins.)

Director: Abbas Kiarostami

Stars: Behzad Dorani, Noghre Asadi, Roushan Karam Elmi, Bahman Ghobadi

24.

Killing Mad Dogs (2001)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.9/10 X

Golrokh an Iranian lady who is a talented author struggles to settle her presumably disloyal but amorous... (135 mins.)

Director: Bahram Beizai

Stars: Mozhdeh Shamsai, Majid Mozaffari, Reza Kianian, Mitra Hajjar

25.

The Color of Paradise (1999)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.2/10 X

Mohammad, a boy at Tehran's institute for the blind, waits for his dad to pick him up for summer vacation... (90 mins.)

Director: Majid Majidi

Stars: Hossein Mahjoub, Mohsen Ramezani, Salameh Feyzi, Farahnaz Safari

26.

The White Balloon (1995)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.8/10 X

Several people try to take advantage of a little girl's innocence to hustle money her mom gave to her to buy a goldfish with. (85 mins.)

Director: Jafar Panahi

Stars: Aida Mohammadkhani, Mohsen Kafili, Fereshteh Sadre Orafaiy, Anna Borkowska

27.

King of the Hearts (1968)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.3/10 X

A little girl with a blind mother, accidentally becomes friends with a famous and rich singer who decides to help her in her life. (114 mins.)

Director: Mohamad Ali Fardin

Stars: Aref Arefkia, Ahdieh Badiee, Mohamad Ali Fardin, Leila Forouhar

28.

Fireworks Wednesday (2006)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.0/10 X

On the last Wednesday before the spring solstice ushers in the Persian New Year, people set off fireworks following an ancient Zoroastrian tradition. Rouhi, spending her first day at a new job, finds herself in the midst of a different kind of fireworks -- a domestic dispute between her new boss and his wife. (102 mins.)

Director: Asghar Farhadi

Stars: Hamid Farokhnezhad, Hediyeh Tehrani, Taraneh Alidoosti, Pantea Bahram

29.

Low Heights (2002)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X

(115 mins.)

Director: Ebrahim Hatamikia

Stars: Hamid Farokhnezhad, Leila Hatami, Gohar Kheirandish, Mohammad Ali Inanloo

30.

Through the Olive Trees (1994)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.8/10 X

The movie focuses on one of the events in Zendegi Edame Darad (1992), and explores the relationship between the movie director... (103 mins.)

Director: Abbas Kiarostami

Stars: Mohamad Ali Keshavarz, Farhad Kheradmand, Zarifeh Shiva, Hossein Rezai

31.

The Deer (1974)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.3/10 X

Wounded by the police, a thief looks up his old friend in order to leave the proceeds of his theft with him... (115 mins.)

Director: Masud Kimiai

Stars: Behrouz Vossoughi, Faramarz Gharibian, Nosrat Partovi, Garshasb Raoufi

32.

The Love-stricken (1992)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.7/10 X

A movie about the Iranian classical musicians in Ghajar era and their struggle to release their first Record which takes them on a journey to France. (91 mins.)

Director: Ali Hatami

Stars: Faramarz Sadighi, Amin Tarokh, Akbar Abdi, Jamshid Hashempur

33.

Ballad of Tara (1979)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X

Tara, the young beautiful widow, returns with her two little kids from country to her village. In her way home... (110 mins.)

Director: Bahram Beizai

Stars: Susan Taslimi, Manuchehr Farid, Reza Babak, Siamak Atlassi

34.

Ten (2002)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X

Ten sequences examine the emotional lives of women at significant junctures. (94 mins.)

Director: Abbas Kiarostami

Stars: Mania Akbari, Amin Maher, Kamran Adl, Roya Akbari

35.

The Song of Sparrows (2008)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.0/10 X

When an ostrich-rancher focuses on replacing his daughter's hearing aid, which breaks right before crucial exams... (96 mins.)

Director: Majid Majidi

Stars: Mohammad Amir Naji, Maryam Akbari, Kamran Dehghan, Hamid Aghazi

36.

So Close, So Far (2005)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.7/10 X

Dr. Alam, a very profiled specialist in neurology and a successful surgeon, is drowned in his professional and social work... (121 mins.)

Director: Seyyed Reza Mir-Karimi

Stars: Afshin Hashemi, Elham Hamidi, Ashkan Khatibi, Mohammadreza Najafi

37.

The Glass Agency (1999)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.2/10 X

The Glass Agency is the story of a war veteran living in post war Iran. It depicts veterans who are suffering from social problems after the war... (114 mins.)

Director: Ebrahim Hatamikia

Stars: Parviz Parastui, Reza Kianian, Habib Rezaei, Bita Baadraan

38.

Homework (1989 Documentary)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.0/10 X

In this documentary, Kiarostami asks a number of students about their school homework. The answers of some children shows the darker side of this method of education. (86 mins.)

Director: Abbas Kiarostami

Stars: Babak Ahmadpoor, Farhang Akhavan, Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh, Abbas Kiarostami

39.

Nassereddin Shah, Actor-e Cinema (1992)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X

Mirza Ebrahim Khan, travels past in time to introduce cinematography to the previous king who can afford to pay for the new industry... (90 mins.)

Director: Mohsen Makhmalbaf

Stars: Akbar Abdi, Morteza Ahmadi, Dariush Arjmand, Ezzatolah Entezami

40.

The Raven (1976)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.2/10 X

(120 mins.)

Director: Bahram Beizai

Stars: Parvaneh Massoumi, Hossein Parvaresh, Anik Shefrazian, Manuchehr Farid

41.

Life, and Nothing More... (1992)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.0/10 X

After the earthquake of Guilan, the film director and his son, Puya, travel to the devastated area to... (95 mins.)

Director: Abbas Kiarostami

Stars: Farhad Kheradmand, Buba Bayour, Hocine Rifahi, Ferhendeh Feydi

42.

Kamalolmolk (1984)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X

The movie chronicles the life of the famous painter Kamololmolk, and his relationship with various kings. (122 mins.)

Director: Ali Hatami

Stars: Ezzatolah Entezami, Jahangir Forouhar, Leila Hatami, Mohamad Ali Keshavarz

43.

Beehive (1975)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X

Recently have been released from jail, Ebi makes a bet with his Friend that he goes and drinks in seven bars without even paying any money.

Director: Fereydun Gole

Stars: Behrouz Vossoughi, Davoud Rashidi, Reza Karam Rezai, Jalal Pishvaian

44.

Captain Khorshid (1987)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X

(117 mins.)

Director: Naser Taghvai

Stars: Dariush Arjmand, Ali Nassirian, Saeed Poursamimi, Parvaneh Massoumi

45.

A Time for Drunken Horses (2000)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.7/10 X

Young Iranian Kurds (brothers and sisters) try to save the youngest of them, who is seriously ill. (80 mins.)

Director: Bahman Ghobadi

Stars: Ayoub Ahmadi, Rojin Younessi, Amaneh Ekhtiar-dini, Madi Ekhtiar-dini

46.

The Cycle (1978)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X

Ali and his father go from their poor neighborhood in the outskirts of the city to a hospital so that Ali's father can be treated for his sickness... (101 mins.)

Director: Dariush Mehrjui

Stars: Saeed Kangarani, Ezzatolah Entezami, Fourouzan, Bahman Forsi

47.

The Past (2013)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.9/10 X

An Iranian man deserts his French wife and her two children to return to his homeland. Meanwhile, his wife starts up a new relationship, a reality her husband confronts upon his wife's request for a divorce. (130 mins.)

Director: Asghar Farhadi

Stars: Bérénice Bejo, Tahar Rahim, Ali Mosaffa, Pauline Burlet

48.

Stranger and the Fog (1976)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X

(140 mins.)

Director: Bahram Beizai

Stars: Parvaneh Massoumi, Khosrow Shojazadeh, Manuchehr Farid, Esmat Safavi

49.

M for Mother (2006)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X

What appears to be a grand love story turns sour when parents-to-be discover that their unborn child will likely be born with serious birth defects... (113 mins.)

Director: Rasool Mollagholi Poor

Stars: Golshifteh Farahani, Hosein Yari, Jamshid Hashempur, Mohammad-Ali Shadman

50.

The Father (1996)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X

Mehrollah is a 14-year-old boy who is forced to find a job to support his family after his father dies. He travels to the southern parts of Iran, looking for work. Upon his return to his hometown, he notices certain changes in his family. (96 mins.)

Director: Majid Majidi

Stars: Hossein Abedini, Mohammad Kasebi, Parivash Nazarieh, Hassan Sadeghi

51.

No One Knows About Persian Cats (2009)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.3/10 X

Iranian musicians Negar and Ashkan look for band members to play at a London concert - and the visas that allow them to leave Tehran to do so. (106 mins.)

Director: Bahman Ghobadi

Stars: Negar Shaghaghi, Ashkan Koshanejad, Hamed Behdad, Babak Mirzakhani

52.

The Musicman (2007)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X

Ali is son of a well-off family who plays santoor (an Iranian instrument like dulcimer) and has earned... (107 mins.)

Director: Dariush Mehrjui

Stars: Bahram Radan, Golshifteh Farahani, Masoud Rayegany, Roya Taymourian

53.

The Lizard (2004)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.6/10 X

A recently jailed petty thief disguises as a religious and succeeds in escaping; but has to stay in a religious' role more than he expected to. (115 mins.)

Director: Kamal Tabrizi

Stars: Parviz Parastui, Bahram Ibrahimi, Shahrokh Foroutanian, Farideh Sepah Mansour

54.

The Pear Tree (1998)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.8/10 X

Esteemed writer Mahmoud suffers from writers block. While trying to work at the family estate, concerns about an unproductive pear tree trigger in him memories of his childhood love for beautiful tomboy "M". (95 mins.)

Director: Dariush Mehrjui

Stars: Homayoun Ershadi, Golshifteh Farahani, Mohammad Reza Shaban-Noori, Nematollah Gorji

55.

The Fish Fall in Love (2006)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.0/10 X

After 22 years, Aziz decides to return to his hometown, to sell some family possessions, including the house where he was born... (96 mins.)

Director: Ali Rafie

Stars: Reza Kianian, Roya Nonahali, Golshifteh Farahani, Maryam Saadat

56.

Dead End (1977)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X

A young woman is living with her mother at the end of a dead-end street. The young woman notices that... (95 mins.)

Director: Parviz Sayyad

Stars: Mary Apick, Parviz Bahador, Apik Youssefian, Bahman Zarrinpour

57.

The Cyclist (1987)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X

The wife of Nasim, an Afghan immigrant in Iran, is gravely ill. He needs money to pay for her care,... (95 mins.)

Director: Mohsen Makhmalbaf

Stars: Mahshid Afsharzadeh, Firouz Kiani, Samira Makhmalbaf, Mohammad Reza Maleki

58.

Tangna (1973)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.1/10 X

Naderi's second film is set in the slums of Tehran. Hanging out in a pool hall, Ali Khoshdast becomes involved in a brawl with three brothers... (88 mins.)

Director: Amir Naderi

Stars: Saeed Rad, Nuri Kasrai, Enayat Bakhshi, Mohammad Eskandari

59.

The Tenants (1986)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.9/10 X

Two brothers are involved in a dispute over a house in urban Tehran. It is only through a series of adventures with the tenants that they are able to settle their differences. (109 mins.)

Director: Dariush Mehrjui

Stars: Akbar Abdi, Ezzatolah Entezami, Farimah Farjami, Manouchehr Hamedi

60.

As Simple as That (2008)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.3/10 X

Tomorrow is an important day for Amir. He had participated in an international architecture competition to win the competition with foreign companies... (90 mins.)

Director: Seyyed Reza Mir-Karimi

Stars: Safa Aghajani, Parvaneh Ahmadi, Ahmad Akeshteh, N. Hamdam Ali

61.

Baran (2001)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.9/10 X

In a building site in present-day Tehran, Lateef, a 17-year-old Turkish worker is irresistibly drawn to Rahmat, a young Afghan worker. The revelation of Rahmat's secret changes both their lives. (94 mins.)

Director: Majid Majidi

Stars: Hossein Abedini, Zahra Bahrami, Mohammad Amir Naji, Hossein Mahjoub

62.

Two Women (1999)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.9/10 X

A sensation when released in 1999 in Iran, Two Women charts the lives of two promising architecture... (96 mins.)

Director: Tahmineh Milani

Stars: Mohammad Reza Forutan, Niki Karimi, Reza Khandan, Atila Pesiani

63.

Travellers (1991)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.7/10 X

A young woman's wedding becomes a ritual of mourning when her sister and family die in an auto accident on the way to the wedding... (90 mins.)

Director: Bahram Beizai

Stars: Karim Akbari Mobarakeh, Shahin Alizadeh, Hamid Amjad, Fariborz Arabnia

64.

The Report (1977)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.2/10 X

The movie revolves around the life of a tax collector who is accused of taking bribes, and also has to deal with problems at home... (112 mins.)

Director: Abbas Kiorastamu

Stars: Shohreh Aghdashloo, Kurosh Afsharpanah, Mehdi Montazar, Mostafa Tari

65.

Booye kafoor, atre yas (2000)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.9/10 X

Death surrounds Bahman, a director who hasn't made a film in 24 years (he can't get past the censors)... (93 mins.)

Director: Bahman Farmanara

Stars: Bahman Farmanara, Roya Nonahali, Ebrahim Abadi, Dariush Asadzade

66.

Dar emtedad shab (1978)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.7/10 X

(123 mins.)

Director: Parviz Sayyad

Stars: Googoosh, Saeed Kangarani, Mahbubeh Bayat, Jahangir Forouhar

67.

Under the Skin of the City (2001)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X

Tuba works daily at a grueling textile factory in Iran, returning home every night to deal with the rest of her problematic family... (92 mins.)

Director: Rakhshan Bani-Etemad

Stars: Golab Adineh, Mohammad Reza Forutan, Baran Kosari, Ebrahim Sheibani

68.

Gabbeh (1996)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.1/10 X

An elderly couple go about their routine of cleaning their gabbeh (a intricately-designed rug), while bickering gently with each other... (75 mins.)

Director: Mohsen Makhmalbaf

Stars: Shaghayeh Djodat, Hossein Moharami, Rogheih Moharami, Abbas Sayah

69.

Taxi (2015)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X

Jafar Panahi is banned from making movies by the Iranian government, he poses as a taxi driver and makes a movie about social challenges in Iran. (82 mins.)

Director: Jafar Panahi

Stars: Jafar Panahi

70.

Toughi (1971)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.8/10 X

There is an old saying in Farsi, "if you catch a Toughi to keep, it will bring bad omens to the members of the family". ... (120 mins.)

Director: Ali Hatami

Stars: Behrouz Vossoughi, Nasser Malekmotei, Afarin Obeisi, Hamideh Kheirabadi

71.

The Actor (1993)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.9/10 X

(88 mins.)

Director: Mohsen Makhmalbaf

Stars: Akbar Abdi, Fatemah Motamed-Aria, Mahaya Petrossian

72.

Marooned in Iraq (2002)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X

During the war between Iran and Iraq, a group of Iranian Kurd musicians set off on an almost impossible mission... (108 mins.)

Director: Bahman Ghobadi

Stars: Shahab Ebrahimi, Faegh Mohamadi, Allah-Morad Rashtian, Rojan Hosseini

73.

I Am Taraneh, I Am Fifteen Years Old (2002)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.3/10 X

Fifteen year old Taraneh, whose widowed father is in jail, refuses the unwanted attentions of carpet salesman Amir... (110 mins.)

Director: Rasoul Sadrameli

Stars: Taraneh Alidoosti, Hossein Mahjoub, Mahtab Nasirpour, Milad Sadrameli

74.

Blackboards (2000)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.9/10 X

Itinerant Kurdish teachers, carrying blackboards on their backs, look for students in the hills and villages of Iran... (88 mins.)

Director: Samira Makhmalbaf

Stars: Said Mohamadi, Behnaz Jafari, Bahman Ghobadi, Mohamad Karim Rahmati

75.

Arousi-ye Khouban (1989)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.6/10 X

Haji is severely traumatized by the war with Iraq. Back from the front, he's unable to adapt to civilian life... (75 mins.)

Director: Mohsen Makhmalbaf

Stars: Ebrahim Abadi, Mahmud Bigham, Roya Nonahali, Mohsen Zaehtab

76.

Croesus' Treasure (1965)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.9/10 X

When two young poor men save a rich man who has decided to suicide and take care of him, he learns about the other part of the society and poor people's life. (110 mins.)

Director: Syamak Yasami

Stars: Mohamad Ali Fardin, Arman, Fourouzan, Taghi Zohuri

77.

Shayad Vaghti Deegar (1987)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.3/10 X

(159 mins.)

Director: Bahram Beizai

Stars: Simin Ansari, Siamak Atlassi, Dariush Farhang, Ghodrat Latifi

78.

Offside (2006)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.3/10 X

Struggle of Women in a country that excludes them from entering the stadiums. (93 mins.)

Director: Jafar Panahi

Stars: Sima Mobarak-Shahi, Shayesteh Irani, Ayda Sadeqi, Golnaz Farmani

79.

The Mirror (1997)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X

A girl in traditional female clothing, with her arm in plaster, comes out of school one day and doesn't find her mother meeting her... (95 mins.)

Director: Jafar Panahi

Stars: Mina Mohammad Khani, Aida Mohammadkhani, Kazem Mojdehi, Naser Omuni

80.

Gheisar (1969)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.9/10 X

A young man's drive to avenge for his sister and brother. (100 mins.)

Director: Masud Kimiai

Stars: Behrouz Vossoughi, Pouri Baneai, Nasser Malekmotei, Jamshid Mashayekhi

81.

Kandahar (2001)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.8/10 X

After an Afghanistan-born woman who lives in Canada receives a letter from her suicidal sister, she takes a perilous journey through Afghanistan to try to find her. (85 mins.)

Director: Mohsen Makhmalbaf

Stars: Nelofer Pazira, Hassan Tantai, Ike Ogut, Sadou Teymouri

82.

The Hidden Half (2001)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.2/10 X

An official is sent from his home in Tehran to hear the final appeal of a woman sentenced to death, a political prisoner... (103 mins.)

Director: Tahmineh Milani

Stars: Niki Karimi, Mohammad Nikbin, Atila Pesiani, Soghra Obeisi

83.

Leila (1997)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.8/10 X

Leila and Reza meet in a kind of celebration and fall for each other. Having discovered their love,... (102 mins.)

Director: Dariush Mehrjui

Stars: Leila Hatami, Ali Mosaffa, Jamileh Sheikhi, Mohamad Reza Sharifinia

84.

Goodbye Friend (1971)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X

(102 mins.)

Director: Amir Naderi

Stars: Saeed Rad, Zackaria Hashemi, Vejesta, Iren

85.

Deep Breath (2003)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.8/10 X

This is about two guys who are departed from their family in totally different ways, they are anti social and try to live in a large city without any money, one of them fall in love and another one got addicted. (86 mins.)

Director: Parviz Shahbazi

Stars: Mansur Shahbazi, Maryam Palizban, Said Amini

86.

Tight Spot (1974)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X

This film, based on a well-known novel of the same name by Sadegh Chooback, is about a wronged man seeking revenge... (112 mins.)

Director: Amir Naderi

Stars: Behrouz Vossoughi, Parviz Fanizadeh, Jafar Vali, Enayat Bakhshi

87.

Border Café (2005)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X

"Cafe Transit" depicts an independent-minded widow who bucks tradition to run her dead husband's truck stop café. (105 mins.)

Director: Kambuzia Partovi

Stars: Fereshteh Sadre Orafaiy, Parviz Parastui, Nikos Papadopoulos, Svieta Mikalishina

88.

Mum's Guest (2004)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.2/10 X

A mother of a poor family, has guests coming over, yet doesn't know how to get the dinner party altogether with limited resources. (103 mins.)

Director: Dariush Mehrjui

Stars: Golab Adineh, Roya Alemi, Amin Hayayee, Amir Hoseini

89.

Hamsafar (1975)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.8/10 X

Director: Masud Asadollahi

Stars: Behrouz Vossoughi, Googoosh, Hamideh Kheirabadi, Nematollah Gorji

90.

Leily Is with Me (1996)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.8/10 X

During the Iran-Iraq war, a television cinematographer, having financial problems, needs to get a loan... (95 mins.)

Director: Kamal Tabrizi

Stars: Parviz Parastui, Mahmud Azizi, Shohreh Lorestani, Sahereh Matin

91.

Here Without Me (2011)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.1/10 X

The story is about the world of a small family with familiar dreams and not so remarkable problems. The mother is trying to lead everything to save her family, but small events disarrange all her plans. (100 mins.)

Director: Bahram Tavakoli

Stars: Saber Abar, Negar Javaherian, Fatemah Motamed-Aria, Parsa Pirouzfar

92.

Pari (1995)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.9/10 X

Haunted by a book found in her dead brother's room, Pari wanders around to find answers for a meaningful life. (115 mins.)

Director: Dariush Mehrjui

Stars: Niki Karimi, Ali Mosaffa, Khosro Shakibai, Melika Sharifinia

93.

Iron Island (2005)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.2/10 X

Squatters, mostly Arabs in Persia, live on a mothballed oil tanker in the Persian Gulf. The children... (90 mins.)

Director: Mohammad Rasoulof

Stars: Ali Nassirian, Hossein Farzi-Zadeh, Neda Pakdaman

94.

Goodbye (2011)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.2/10 X

Story of a young lawyer in Tehran in search of a visa to leave the country, which is what Mohammad Rasoulof did during the winter of 2010/11. (100 mins.)

Director: Mohammad Rasoulof

Stars: Leyla Zareh, Fereshteh Sadre Orafaiy, Shahab Hosseini, Roya Taymourian

95.

The Compromise (1974)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.6/10 X

(100 mins.)

Director: Mohammad Motevaselani

Stars: Behrouz Vossoughi, Nuri Kasrai, Arman, Nushafarin

96.

Gold and Copper (2011)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X

A Tehran mullah-in-training struggles to take care of his ailing wife and their children in this profoundly moving melodrama... (97 mins.)

Director: Homayoun Assadian

Stars: Negar Javaherian, Behrouz Shaibi, Javad Ezati, Sahar Dolatshahi

97.

Botshekan (1976)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.7/10 X

Director: Shapur Gharib

Stars: Behrouz Vossoughi, Jamshid Mashayekhi, Negin, Maliheh Nassiri

98.

The White Meadows (2009)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.7/10 X

Rahmat has been asked to meet the inhabitants of these islands to collect their tears. Although for years people have been giving their tears to Rahmat, no one knows exactly what he has been doing with them. (92 mins.)

Director: Mohammad Rasoulof

Stars: Hassan Pourshirazi, Younes Ghazali, Mohammad Rabbani, Mohammad Shirvani