40 best Iranian movies
by R45001sh | created - 24 Aug 2021 | updated - 24 Aug 2021 | Publicselected by BBC
- Instant Watch Options
- Genres
- Movies or TV
- IMDb Rating
- In Theaters
- Release Year
- Keywords
1. Bride of Fire (2000)
113 min | Drama, Romance
Ahlam who is studying medicine in the college is in love with Dr. Parviz and wants to marry him. But according to her tribe's laws and traditions she must marry her cousin Farhan. She decides to face her family and find a solution.
Director: Khosrow Sinai | Stars: Mehdi Ahmadi, Ghazal Saremi, Hamid Farrokhnezhad, Salimeh Rangzan
Votes: 584
2. The Lead (1989)
123 min | Action, History, Thriller
Tehran, 1948. A young Jewish couple, Danial and his wife Munes, decide to immigrate to the recently founded state of Israel. But their application is rejected on the ground of the documents... See full summary »
Director: Masud Kimiai | Stars: Jamshid Mashayekhi, Jalal Moghadam, Hadi Eslami, Amin Tarokh
Votes: 317
3. The Peddler (1987)
95 min | Drama
Consisting of three separate stories, the director explores "Man" as a theme: birth, life and death, to present a sometimes comic, sometimes tragic portrait of life at the bottom of the socio-economic pile.
Director: Mohsen Makhmalbaf | Stars: Mahmoud Basiri, Behzad Behzadpour, Jafar Dehghan, Farid Koshan Falah
Votes: 424
4. Under the Skin of the City (2001)
92 min | Drama
A valuable visual commentary on modern society, 'Under The Skin Of The City' follows one Iranian family in their eternal struggle to stay afloat financially and emotionally. Touba works ... See full summary »
Director: Rakhshan Banietemad | Stars: Golab Adineh, Mohammad Reza Forutan, Baran Kosari, Ebrahim Sheibani
Votes: 1,677
5. Maybe Some Other Time (1988)
159 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Mr. Modabber who is a dubber see his wife Kian sitting in a car of a stranger in one scene of a documentary he is been dubbing. With the help of the director and the editor of the ... See full summary »
Director: Bahram Beyzaie | Stars: Susan Taslimi, Dariush Farhang, Simin Ansari, Siamak Atlassi
Votes: 757
6. The Circle (2000)
Not Rated | 90 min | Drama
Various women struggle to function in the oppressively sexist society of contemporary Iran.
Director: Jafar Panahi | Stars: Maryiam Palvin Almani, Nargess Mamizadeh, Mojgan Faramarzi, Elham Saboktakin
Votes: 6,686 | Gross: $0.67M
7. To Be or Not to Be (1998)
94 min | Drama
Anik a young girl is in desperate need to heart implement. She with the help of her doctor goes to a hospital where a young guy Amir is in a coma. On his wedding night he had an accident ... See full summary »
Director: Kianoush Ayari | Stars: Asal Badeei, Farhad Sharifi, Hossein Ilbeygi, Noor-Ali Lotfi
Votes: 291
8. 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: 7,476
9. The Need (1992)
82 min | Drama
Two boys compete for one job they both need desperately. This movie portrays their rivalry.
Director: Alireza Davoudnejad | Stars: Mohammad Reza Davoudnejad, Tarahom Fathi, Shojaoddin Habibian, Maziar Lorestani
Votes: 295
10. The Cyclist (1989)
82 min | Drama
The wife of Nasim, an Afghan immigrant in Iran, is gravely ill. He needs money to pay for her care, but his day labor digging wells does not pay enough. A friend connects Nasim to a two-bit... See full summary »
Director: Mohsen Makhmalbaf | Stars: Mahshid Afsharzadeh, Firouz Kiani, Samira Makhmalbaf, Mohammad Reza Maleki
Votes: 2,341
11. 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: 12,329 | Gross: $0.21M
12. 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: 8,246 | Gross: $0.47M
13. 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: 7,268
14. The Pear Tree (1998)
95 min | Drama, Romance
Esteemed writer Mahmoud suffers from writers block. While trying to work at the family estate, concerns about an unproductive pear tree trigger in him memories of his childhood love for beautiful tomboy "M".
Director: Dariush Mehrjui | Stars: Homayoun Ershadi, Golshifteh Farahani, Mohammad Reza Shahbani Nouri, Nematollah Gorji
Votes: 1,660
15. The Blue-Veiled (1995)
85 min | Drama, Romance
An elderly owner of a tomato farm and sauce factory, after his wife's death, falls in love with one of the workers of the factory endangering his relationship with his daughters and in-laws... See full summary »
Director: Rakhshan Banietemad | Stars: Ezzatolah Entezami, Fatemah Motamed-Aria, Golab Adineh, Afsar Asadi
Votes: 800
16. Leily Is with Me (1996)
95 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
During the war with Iraq, an absurd set of events has an Iranian documentary cinematographer seemingly unable to get out of a dangerous project documenting the war.
Director: Kamal Tabrizi | Stars: Parviz Parastui, Mahmoud Azizi, Maziar Lorestani, Rahman Bagherian
Votes: 5,036
17. Leila (I) (1997)
Not Rated | 102 min | Drama, Family, Romance
The story of a semi-modern Iranian couple, who are trying to fight the old beliefs and old generation, but is a failing battle because the man is not strong enough.
Director: Dariush Mehrjui | Stars: Leila Hatami, Ali Mosaffa, Jamileh Sheikhi, Mohammad Reza Sharifinia
Votes: 4,110 | Gross: $0.05M
18. Death of Yazdgerd (1982)
110 min | Drama, History
Death of Yazdgerd is the story of death of the last king of Iran before Muslims invade Iran. He escapes to city of Marv and hides in a mill but finally gets killed. The Story is told by the... See full summary »
Director: Bahram Beyzaie | Stars: Susan Taslimi, Mehdi Hashemi, Mahmoud Behrouzian, Amin Tarokh
Votes: 1,235
19. 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
20. Beyond the Fire (1987)
100 min | Drama
Greed and power are the principal themes in Kianus Aayari's tale about two brothers in 1970's Iran. When the National Iranian Oil Company expands its drilling operations in the region, one ... See full summary »
Director: Kianoush Ayari | Stars: Khosrow Shojazadeh, Siamak Atlassi, Mehrdad Vafadar Shooshtari, Atefeh Razavi
Votes: 173
21. 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: 13,499
22. Travellers (1992)
90 min | Drama
A young woman's wedding becomes a ritual of mourning when her sister and family die in an auto accident on the way to the wedding. The sisters' mother refuses to accept her daughter's death... See full summary »
Director: Bahram Beyzaie | Stars: Mozhdeh Shamsai, Homa Rusta, Jamileh Sheikhi, Niku Kheradmand
Votes: 1,223
23. Deep Breath (2003)
86 min | Drama, Romance
This is about two guys who are departed from their family in totally different ways, they are anti social and try to live in a large city without any money, one of them fall in love and another one got addicted.
Director: Parviz Shahbazi | Stars: Mansour Shahbazi, Maryam Palizban, Said Amini
Votes: 919
24. Narges (1992)
95 min | Drama
Adel is a young criminal who frequently teams up with his middle-aged wife Afagh in order to carry out the most audacious schemes. But when Adel falls in love with Narges, he realises he is... See full summary »
Director: Rakhshan Banietemad | Stars: Farimah Farjami, Abolfazl Poorarab, Atefeh Razavi, Reza Karam Rezai
Votes: 352
25. Mother (1990)
108 min | Drama
How a mother acts in the hardest parts of her, and her children's lives.
Director: Ali Hatami | Stars: Rogheyeh Chehreh-Azad, Mohamad Ali Keshavarz, Farimah Farjami, Amin Tarokh
Votes: 5,099
26. 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: 23,039 | Gross: $0.00M
27. The Last Act (1991)
110 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
"Gaslight" as Farsi farce. Kamran and Moluk, middle-aged siblings, live penniless in the family's Tehran mansion, selling furniture to pay expenses. Their brother, who owns the house, has ... See full summary »
Director: Varuzh Karim-Masihi | Stars: Farimah Farjami, Dariush Arjmand, Niku Kheradmand, Shahin Alizadeh
Votes: 521
28. Through the Olive Trees (1994)
G | 103 min | Drama
A depiction of the off-screen relationship between the actors who play the newlyweds in the film And Life Goes On (1992).
Director: Abbas Kiarostami | Stars: Mohamad Ali Keshavarz, Farhad Kheradmand, Zarifeh Shiva, Hossein Rezai
Votes: 10,006 | Gross: $0.04M
29. Captain Khorshid (1987)
118 min | Crime, Drama
Khaje Majed informs the authorities about Captain Khorshid smuggling with his ship. The authorities take the smuggling and burn it. Farhan is a new arriver in the port. He wants to smuggle ... See full summary »
Director: Nasser Taghvai | Stars: Dariush Arjmand, Ali Nasirian, Saeed Poursamimi, Parvaneh Massoumi
Votes: 1,236
30. 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: 57,193 | Gross: $0.11M
31. 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: 36,805 | Gross: $0.31M
32. Hamoun (1990)
Not Rated | 120 min | Drama
Hamoon's wife is leaving him. He is also unsuccessfully trying to finish his Ph. D. thesis. He is forced to reexamine his life. In a series of flashbacks and dreams, Hamoon tries to figure out what he did wrong.
Director: Dariush Mehrjui | Stars: Khosro Shakibai, Ezzatolah Entezami, Hossein Sarshar, Bita Farahi
Votes: 7,247
33. 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: 258,641 | Gross: $7.10M
34. 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: 18,727
35. The Runner (1984)
Not Rated | 94 min | Drama
After enrolling in a school, an impoverished boy finds conflict with his classmates and decides to compete to earn their respect.
Director: Amir Naderi | Stars: Madjid Niroumand, Abbas Nazeri, Musa Torkizadeh
Votes: 2,341
36. The Tenants (1987)
109 min | Comedy, Drama
The tenants of a rundown building on the outskirts of Tehran with no legal heir face major housing problems to deal with: major repairs and threat of eviction by greedy building manager who wants to own the building.
Director: Dariush Mehrjui | Stars: Akbar Abdi, Ezzatolah Entezami, Faramarz Fardtombekian, Farimah Farjami
Votes: 2,755
37. Bashu, the Little Stranger (1989)
120 min | Drama, War
An Iranian boy is lost after fleeing home for his life; his family has been killed during the Iran-Iraq war. He's saved and trained by a middle-aged woman.
Director: Bahram Beyzaie | Stars: Susan Taslimi, Parviz Poorhosseini, Adnan Afravian, Golshan Anooshe
Votes: 3,205
Tell Your Friends