The Best Persian Movies
by mohammad_khazaei | created - 30 Apr 2011 | updated - 29 May 2014 | PublicIn my opinion these are the most outstanding Persian movies as far as I've watched. I think these movies represent the culture, traditions and dilemmas of Iranian people much better.
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1. A Separation (2011)
PG-13 | 123 min | Drama
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.
Director: Asghar Farhadi | Stars: Payman Maadi, Leila Hatami, Sareh Bayat, Shahab Hosseini
Votes: 258,532 | Gross: $7.10M
2. So Close, So Far (2005)
121 min | Drama
Dr. Alam, a very profiled specialist in neurology and a successful surgeon, is drowned in his professional and social work, in a way that he has totally forgotten all about his son Saman. ... See full summary »
Director: Reza Mirkarimi | Stars: Alireza Phoenix, Masoud Rayegan, Afshin Hashemi, Farbod Masoud Vaziri
Votes: 2,844
3. Hush! Girls Don't Scream (2013)
106 min | Drama
Shirin is supposed to get married in a couple of hours, but she unexpectedly murders a man. The cause of the crime, rooted in her nightmarish childhood, unravels gradually and the real question emerges: Who is the REAL criminal?
Director: Pouran Derakhshandeh | Stars: Tannaz Tabatabaei, Merila Zare'i, Babak Hamidian, Shahab Hosseini
Votes: 5,230
4. Children of Heaven (1997)
PG | 89 min | Drama, Family, Sport
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.
Director: Majid Majidi | Stars: Mohammad Amir Naji, Amir Farrokh Hashemian, Bahare Seddiqi, Nafise Jafar-Mohammadi
Votes: 80,704 | Gross: $0.93M
5. And Life Goes On (1992)
Not Rated | 95 min | Adventure, Drama
A director and his son return to a region damaged by the Guilan earthquake, hoping to find the children who appeared in his film a few years earlier.
Director: Abbas Kiarostami | Stars: Farhad Kheradmand, Pouya Payvar, Behrouz Abedini, Shahin Abzan
Votes: 7,462
6. The Past (2013)
PG-13 | 130 min | Drama, Mystery
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.
Director: Asghar Farhadi | Stars: Bérénice Bejo, Tahar Rahim, Ali Mosaffa, Pauline Burlet
Votes: 50,890 | Gross: $1.33M
7. From Karkheh to Rhein (1993)
93 min | Drama, War
Saeed who is suffering from injuries that he received in the Iran-Iraq War, is sent to Germany for treatments. In Germany, he meets his sister and her German husband. Saeed and his sister ... See full summary »
Director: Ebrahim Hatamikia | Stars: Ali Dehkordi, Homa Rusta, Hans Noiman, Sadegh Safaie
Votes: 3,037
8. The Glass Agency (1998)
114 min | Action, Drama, Romance
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. Society does not understand them and the ... See full summary »
Director: Ebrahim Hatamikia | Stars: Parviz Parastui, Reza Kianian, Habib Rezaei, Ghasem Zare
Votes: 7,265
9. The Scent of Joseph's Shirt (1995)
100 min | Drama, War
Ghafoor is a Taxi Driver whose son is saying to be killed during war but he is refusing to believe it. Although all the evidences proves that his son is dead and everyone believe so, he ... See full summary »
Director: Ebrahim Hatamikia | Stars: Niki Karimi, Ali Nasirian, Jafar Dehghan, Shirin Bina
Votes: 1,739
10. The Chorus (1982)
17 min | Short, Drama
A deaf old man wearing a hearing aid is walking in the streets of Rasht. When the surroundings get too noisy, he turns off his sound. Unfortunately, when he returns home, he can't hear his granddaughter ringing the doorbell.
Director: Abbas Kiarostami | Stars: Yoosef Moghaddam, Ali Asgari, Teymour
Votes: 697
11. Gold and Copper (2010)
97 min | Drama, Romance
A Tehran mullah-in-training struggles to take care of his ailing wife and their children in this profoundly moving melodrama. A film of near-universal appeal, it puts a human face on Iran's... See full summary »
Director: Homayoon Ass'adian | Stars: Negar Javaherian, Behrouz Shoaybi, Javad Ezati, Sahar Dolatshahi
Votes: 3,770
12. Baran (2001)
PG | 94 min | Drama, Romance
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.
Director: Majid Majidi | Stars: Hossein Abedini, Zahra Bahrami, Mohammad Amir Naji, Hossein Mahjoub
Votes: 8,963 | Gross: $0.13M
13. The Cow (1969)
Not Rated | 104 min | Drama
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.
Director: Dariush Mehrjui | Stars: Ezzatolah Entezami, Mahin Shahabi, Ali Nasirian, Jamshid Mashayekhi
Votes: 7,988
14. The Lizard (2004)
115 min | Comedy, Drama
A recently jailed petty thief disguises as a Mullah and succeeds in escaping; but has to stay in the Mullah' role longer than he expected to.
Director: Kamal Tabrizi | Stars: Parviz Parastui, Bahram Ebrahimi, Reza Saeedi, Shahrokh Foroutanian
Votes: 22,450
15. The Color of Paradise (1999)
PG | 90 min | Drama, Family
The story of Mohammed, a blind Iranian boy and his father, Hashem, who is always oscillating between accepting his son as he is and abandoning him, as he represents a burden for him, after the loss of his wife.
Director: Majid Majidi | Stars: Hossein Mahjoub, Mohsen Ramezani, Salameh Feyzi, Farahnaz Safari
Votes: 18,199 | Gross: $1.81M
16. No One Knows About Persian Cats (2009)
106 min | Drama, Music
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.
Director: Bahman Ghobadi | Stars: Negar Shaghaghi, Ashkan Koshanejad, Hamed Behdad, Babak Mirzakhani
Votes: 7,480 | Gross: $0.08M
17. About Elly (2009)
TV-PG | 119 min | Drama, Mystery
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.
Director: Asghar Farhadi | Stars: Taraneh Alidoosti, Golshifteh Farahani, Shahab Hosseini, Merila Zare'i
Votes: 57,164 | Gross: $0.11M
18. Che (2014)
125 min | Biography, Drama, War
An overview of the two-day doctor Mostafa Chamran life (commander of the Iran-Iraq War, who was educated in America and was expert in guerrilla warfare) this film about Defense for peace in the Paveh (city in Iran).
Director: Ebrahim Hatamikia | Stars: Fariborz Arabnia, Saeed Rad, Merila Zare'i, Babak Hamidian
Votes: 3,166
19. Low Heights (2002)
115 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
A domestic Iranian flight is taken hostage by a man Ghasem who is a refugee of war and has financial problems. He will go any distance for his family and wants to find a better place for living.
Director: Ebrahim Hatamikia | Stars: Hamid Farrokhnezhad, Leila Hatami, Gohar Kheirandish, Amir Aghaee
Votes: 3,852
20. Taste of Cherry (1997)
Not Rated | 95 min | Drama
An Iranian man drives his car in search of someone who will quietly bury him under a cherry tree after he commits suicide.
Director: Abbas Kiarostami | Stars: Homayoun Ershadi, Abdolhosein Bagheri, Afshin Khorshid Bakhtiari, Safar Ali Moradi
Votes: 36,765 | Gross: $0.31M
21. The Corridor (2013)
92 min | Drama
Shiva (Hanieh Tavassoli) is the family head and looks after her little son, Amir Ali; a witty and playful boy, in the absence of her husband, Behzad (Reza Attaran) who has committed a ... See full summary »
Director: Behrouz Shoaybi | Stars: Reza Attaran, Hanieh Tavassoli, Mohammad Reza Shirkhanloo, Shahrokh Foroutanian
Votes: 2,028
22. The Third Day (2007)
99 min | Action, Drama, Romance
During the Iran-Iraq War, a disabled young woman is taken captive by Iraqi Baathist forces in Khuzestan Province (in Southern Iran). Her brother, along with his fellow combatants, tries to free his sister from the clutches of the enemy.
Director: Mohammad Hossein Latifi | Stars: Pouria Poursorkh, Baran Kosari, Hamed Behdad, Borzou Arjmand
Votes: 1,389
23. Where Is the Friend's House? (1987)
Not Rated | 83 min | Drama, Family
Eight-year-old Ahmed has mistakenly taken his friend Mohammad's notebook. He wants to return it, or else his friend will be expelled from school. The boy determinedly sets out to find Mohammad's home in the neighbouring village.
Director: Abbas Kiarostami | Stars: Babek Ahmed Poor, Ahmed Ahmed Poor, Khodabakhsh Defaei, Iran Outari
Votes: 18,704
24. Turtles Can Fly (2004)
PG-13 | 98 min | Drama, War
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.
Director: Bahman Ghobadi | Stars: Soran Ebrahim, Avaz Latif, Saddam Hossein Feysal, Hiresh Feysal Rahman
Votes: 20,757 | Gross: $0.26M
25. Half Moon (2006)
107 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
Mamo, an old and legendary Kurdish musician living in Iran, plans to give one final concert in Iraqi Kurdistan. After seven months of trying to get a permit and rounding up his ten sons, he... See full summary »
Director: Bahman Ghobadi | Stars: Ismail Ghaffari, Allah-Morad Rashtian, Farzin Sabooni, Kambiz Arshi
Votes: 3,089 | Gross: $0.00M
26. The Song of Sparrows (2008)
PG | 96 min | Drama, Family
When an ostrich-rancher focuses on replacing his daughter's hearing aid, which breaks right before crucial exams, everything changes for a struggling rural family in Iran. Karim motorbikes ... See full summary »
Director: Majid Majidi | Stars: Mohammad Amir Naji, Maryam Akbari, Kamran Dehghan, Hamid Aghazi
Votes: 11,105 | Gross: $0.12M
27. A Time for Drunken Horses (2000)
Not Rated | 80 min | Drama, War
Young Iranian Kurdish siblings try to save the youngest of them, who is seriously ill.
Director: Bahman Ghobadi | Stars: Ayoub Ahmadi, Rojin Younessi, Amaneh Ekhtiar-dini, Madi Ekhtiar-dini
Votes: 8,831 | Gross: $0.70M
28. Close-Up (1990)
Not Rated | 98 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
The true story of Hossain Sabzian, a cinephile who impersonated the director Mohsen Makhmalbaf to convince a family they would star in his so-called new film.
Director: Abbas Kiarostami | Stars: Hossain Sabzian, Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Abolfazl Ahankhah, Mehrdad Ahankhah
Votes: 23,018 | Gross: $0.00M
29. Boutique (II) (2004)
113 min | Drama
Eti, a 17-year-old girl from a poor family, wants to escape her infernal class boundaries with the help of Jahan, a young man.
Director: Hamid Nematollah | Stars: Mohammad Reza Golzar, Golshifteh Farahani, Reza Rooygari, Ali Alaei
Votes: 2,576
30. Fireworks Wednesday (2006)
Not Rated | 102 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
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.
Director: Asghar Farhadi | Stars: Hediyeh Tehrani, Taraneh Alidoosti, Hamid Farrokhnezhad, Pantea Bahram
Votes: 13,488
31. The White Balloon (1995)
Unrated | 85 min | Drama, Family
Several people try to help a little girl to find the money her mom gave her to buy a goldfish with.
Director: Jafar Panahi | Stars: Aida Mohammadkhani, Mohsen Kafili, Fereshteh Sadre Orafaiy, Anna Borkowska
Votes: 8,244 | Gross: $0.47M
32. The Book of Law (2009)
95 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Rahman falls in love with a Christan woman from Lebanon. She becomes a Muslim before her second meeting with Rahman.
Director: Maziar Miri | Stars: Parviz Parastui, Darine Hamze, Davood Fathali Beigi, Farideh Sepah Mansour
Votes: 2,039
33. The Wind Will Carry Us (1999)
Not Rated | 118 min | Drama
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.
Director: Abbas Kiarostami | Stars: Behzad Dorani, Noghre Asadi, Roushan Karam Elmi, Bahman Ghobadi
Votes: 12,321 | Gross: $0.21M
34. Beautiful City (2004)
98 min | Drama, Romance
In Islamic Iran, how much is a woman worth in comparison with a man, and who pays the difference? This film is tale of vengeance, labyrinthine judicial procedure & the concept of "blood money."
Director: Asghar Farhadi | Stars: Faramarz Gharibian, Taraneh Alidoosti, Babak Ansari, Ahoo Kheradmand
Votes: 6,200
35. Offside (2006)
PG | 93 min | Comedy, Drama, Sport
The struggle of women in a country that excludes them from entering stadiums.
Director: Jafar Panahi | Stars: Sima Mobarak-Shahi, Shayesteh Irani, Ayda Sadeqi, Mohammad Asarian
Votes: 8,607 | Gross: $0.18M
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