Payami's gentle comedy captures a subtle range of human feelings through a quietly inventive visual style that embodies the best life-affirming tendencies of modern Iranian film.
90
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
A finely crafted entertainment that works better than most current Hollywood movies.
83
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Charms with its amalgam of absurdity, optimism, humor, and avuncular regard for the million small daily chores, rituals, suspicions, and courtesies of dwellers on even the sparsest spots on earth.
80
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Washington PostDesson Thomson
A psychic journey deep into the very fabric of Iranian (and by extension, all) life.
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Ray Conlogue
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Ray Conlogue
A beguiling, slow-moving parable.
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Payami has a visual style that is sometimes astonishing, sometimes frustrating, sometimes both.
75
Miami HeraldMarta Barber
Miami HeraldMarta Barber
Secret of this 'Ballot' lies in its humor, charm and universality.
63
New York PostJonathan Foreman
New York PostJonathan Foreman
With its endless takes of characters silently waiting, say, or getting out of bed, this is the kind of film that can be seen only after a full night's sleep. But it is also clever, funny and sometimes moving.