The Persian Version

I enjoyed it more than i thought i would! Probably because i went in, expecting a total disaster! I'm happy that it wasn't but to be honest, this movie isn't THE BEST representation of Iranians, but it's a start!

I see a lot of people talking about the first dance scene and how it's not an Iranian dance, but i think it was not supposed to be. I personally was more concerned about the architecture of houses in Iran in this film, but they made this film in the US, i guess it was as good as they could do it.

Actors' performances were a little off, at least to me, but the casting, specifically the young versions of the main characters were right on!

The story could do a little more grooming in my opinion; there were a lot of unnecessary things that they talked about and a lot more important things that they didn't.

All in all, i am so happy that this movie was made, i think it's a start for the new generation of Iranian filmmakers to show the world what has had happened to us in the last 45 years, because they don't believe the things we say to them easily, they think we're making them up!

I really liked the movie. It made me laugh and cry, and I enjoyed every moment. When it ended, I missed the characters. The story felt familiar, like something from my family. The family parties from the 80s and 90s were spot-on and brought back memories. The way they showed different times in the story was cool, but I got a bit confused when it went back to the 60s. I wanted to know more about how the husband survived. Also, I didn't get why a guy from a village would go all the way to the US. Despite that, the movie had great characters and showed parts of Iranian culture and strong Persian women. It's a perfect example for other movies that women's rights and support doesn't mean picturing all men as evil monsters or negative.

Just Got out of a Persian Version Screening.

It Runs Well for a while and then round about when it gets to the mothers backstory, the wind is completely taken out of the sails.

I was watching it and I thought to myself "ok, I see what the Filmakers are doing, but this is taking far too long " and that segment just brought the film to an absolute standstill(in my opinion).

I think the Structuring of this Film is All Out of Whack. In other words everything in the film is there but it's all out of order.

Another thing, that very ending execution, with the naming of the baby, that was not done Very well at all. It was sort of like "I'm calling the baby so and so" - "Why?" - "Ehh just because". Lol, that's it? Where's the execution of this very important moment? 🤷

Things I did like -

1. I loved the 4th wall Breaking with the Freezing of the background characters.

2. I really like the sometimes playful Tone of the film.

3. Some of the Comedy really worked well.

Overall, the Structuring of the Film Hinders the potential for a Well Delivered Film, and the Very ending Execution is not good.

The writer may have been away from Iran for so long that she's forgotten the actual Iranian life. The movie is called The Persian Version, so I expected it to be relatable to the average Iranian immigrant, but it was not. The depiction of the family's life back in Iran is inaccurate, and the dancing scenes imitate Indian movies. The Iranian houses in the movie are not what typical Iranian houses look like. Their family of 9 is much larger than a classic Iranian family. Even the extent of their belief in religion and the savior did not reflect common religious Iranian beliefs.

For all these reasons I felt a disconnect throughout the movie. The idea for the movie was great, but I wish they would've worked more on their writing and accuracy.

The Persian Version centers on a mother-daughter relationship, while walking through Iranian-American culture and history, family secrets, trauma, and love. While engaging, this disjointed movie starts as a comedy and then gradually amps up its depth as a drama. While the comedy and the drama are both worthwhile stories, they sit imperfectly together in this film, effectively two separate movies. And yet, for its two narratives, The Persian Version serves a love letter for the strength and resilience of immigrant women and their daughters, especially the fierce Iranian women still fighting for their rights today.