Minoo Farshchi Movies
- 2006
A man who wants his daughter to settle down and get married finds his wish is granted in a way he doesn't appreciate in this comedy from director Hassan Fathi. Haj Ebrahim (Dariush Arjmand) is a rug salesman who has deeply traditional views about the place of women in Iranian society, which are often challenged by his twenty-something daughter Shirin (Shila Khodadad). While Haj believes women should stay in the home, Shirin wants a career of her own, and after appealing to her Uncle Saeed (Saeed Kangarani), Saeed gives her a job in his travel agency. Haj only grudging agrees with this, but his sensibilities are more seriously offended when Shirin becomes infatuated with one of her co-workers -- a charming but clumsy American named David (Daniel Holmes). When Shirin and David decide that they want to marry, Haj is less than enthused by the prospect, and as the two families prepare for the wedding, their traditions and expectations run up against one another, with the "happy couple" caught in the middle. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Dariush Arjmand, Fatemeh Goudarzi, (more)
This drama from Iran offers a glimpse into an aspect of Middle Eastern culture and society that is little known (or understood) by most Americans. Mahmoud (Fariborz Arab-Nia) lives in a small town in Iran, where he's happily married to Taraneh (Rozita Gharfari), a dutiful wife who looks after his needs and comforts. However, Taraneh is about the only thing that's going right in Mahmoud's life lately; the factory he owns is in severe financial straits, and his business partner Khakpour (Hamid Reza Afshar) has been seriously injured in an auto accident in Tehran, several hours away from their hometown. Mahmoud is visiting Khakpour in the hospital when he meets a beautiful woman named Sima (Hedieh Tehrani); while Mahmoud makes it clear to her that he's a happily married man, Sima makes no secret of her interest in him, and as he spends more and more time looking after Khakpour, he finds himself frequently crossing Sima's path. Unable to ward off temptation any longer, Mahmoud agrees to a "temporary marriage" with Sima, an Iranian formality that allows men to sleep with other women without violating the culture's strict taboos against extramarital affairs. While Mahmoud tries to make clear that their relationship is indeed temporary, with a clearly delineated expiration date, Sima is not so willing to give him up, and her obsession with Mahmoud soon has unfortunate consequences. Shokaran was a major box-office success in Iran, and is one of the few adult-themed melodramas from Iran to find its way to American screens. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Fariborz Arab-Nia
A woman edging into middle age must make some tough choices about her life and her work in this drama from Iran. Forugh Kia (Minoo Farshi) is a woman in her early '40s who has reached a crossroads in both her personal and professional lives. Forugh is a documentary filmmaker who has been forced by economics to set aside more personal projects in order to accept a commission from a television network to make a simplistic film about "the perfect mother." But Forugh has issues of her own about her role as a mother. After a contentious divorce, Forugh has begun dating again, and has entered into a new relationship with a doctor. But Forugh's son, Mani (Mani Kasraiyan), doesn't approve of her new beau and Forugh has to choose between her own happiness and that of her son. Banooyn-E Ordibeheshti was the winner of the Special Jury Award at the 1998 Fajr Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Minoo Farshchi, Mani Kasraiyan, (more)
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