Letters From Iran - Reviews

Video Librarian - September/October 2006

Letters from Iran
(2006) 33 min. In English & Farsi w/English subtitles. DVD: $59.95. Choices, Inc. PPR. Color cover. ISBN: 1-933724-03-X.
In this compact documentary, filmmaker Nezam Manouchehri’s return to his Iranian homeland stirs ambivalent feelings after years of self-imposed exile. The narrative is composed of letters written by Manoucherhri to an American friend, with most of his observations contrasting the dramatic pre- and post-Islamic Revolution differences in Iran. Neither environment was particularly ideal (many conveniently forget the repressive American-financed regime of the Shah of Iran), but today’s Iran is presented here as a country racked by contradiction: heavy-handed fundamentalism seems to be universally embraced yet quietly elbowed aside for such Western niceties as satellite dish broadcasting of Hollywood movies. Welcomed warmly by his family, Manoucherhri nonetheless feels like a stranger in a strange land, baffled by the multiple-standard society that emerged in his absence. At a historical moment when Iran is emerging anew as a supposed threat to Middle Eastern security, this sincere, moving, and timely film offers an interesting look at contemporary Iran. DVD extras include an interview with the directors. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)