9 Bold Iranian Movies Banned for “Destructive” Themes

In this list, we will take a look at 9 brave Iranian movies that were banned by the Islamic Regime. Iran has been the scene of violent protests against the regime for about a month now. In this list, we will examine 9 courageous Iranian movies that could not be released in the country. But first, let’s remember what happened in Iran.

As we know, Mahsa Amini died shortly after being detained by Iran’s morality police last month on the grounds that her “headscarf was not worn properly.” The uprising that followed Amini’s death was an expression of the social anger that has accumulated over the years in Iranian society. In addition to demanding justice for Amini, the protesters are fighting for a series of demands, including the Iranian regime recognizing the personal and political freedoms of its citizens and being accountable to society.

Human rights activists say that due to the protests spreading to more than 80 provinces in Iran, the Iranian regime has issued hundreds of arrest lists, including many journalists, and has carried out disproportionate acts of violence against protesters, including deaths, through Iranian law enforcement. Since the Iranian regime strictly controls internet use, the Iranian people’s ability to communicate instantly with the rest of the world is still limited. Those who analyze the protests in the country say that the protests will most likely not fade away soon. Although the numbers vary according to sources, it is reported that dozens of people have lost their lives during the protests.

As a result of the Iranian Revolution in 1979, an Islamic Regime was established in Iran, overthrowing the monarchy-based Shah Regime. The new government, together with all social opposition forces, declared its sovereignty after the revolution and continued the oppression of the Shah Regime on the people. Many political movements that participated in the Iranian Revolution also received their share of this oppression. The existing sharia law declared its sovereignty in the field of culture and arts and subjected new and old cultural and artistic works to serious control and censorship. Today, we will examine 9 different Iranian movies that were banned by the Iranian Regime. Let’s take a look at these 9 brave productions, some of which were banned because of their emphasis on gender equality, some because they contained LGBTI+ characters and in this context, they “encouraged homosexuality” (!), and some because they contained “subversive” or “non-religious” elements.

Movie List Index

1.Bita

Bita, a 1972 Iranian movie, was directed by master director Hajir Darioush, known as the “pioneer of progressive Iranian cinema.” It was banned under the infamous censorship law that was enacted in 1981 after the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran because it criticized the exploitation of women by the male-dominated establishment. The famous artist Googoosh, who played the lead role, was also the first woman in Iran to incorporate modern dance moves into her performances. She was imprisoned for having an extramarital affair and is now 72 years old and living in exile.

Bita is a young girl living with her family. She loves her sick father very much, but her mother’s recklessness towards her is wearing her out. Bita is in love with Korush, an open-minded young reporter, and wants to convince him to marry her, but Korush rejects Bita. When her father dies and Korush leaves her, the world turns dark for Bita, and she is forced to accept a forced marriage. Bita, who finds Korush again by chance, is unaware that she will be in a more difficult situation than she already is.

Information about Bita (1972):

Director: Houshang Kaveh
Cast: Googoosh, Behrouz Vossoughi, Hamideh Kheirabadi
Release Year: 1972
Duration: 107 minutes
Country: Iran
Genre: Drama
Language: Persian
Age Rating: N/A
Available Platforms: N/A
IMDb Rating: 6.4/10
Similar Movies: Gheisar (1969), Dash Akol (1971)
Trailer: N/A
IMDb Link: Bita on IMDb

2.Gabbeh

Gabbeh, a 1996 Iranian movie directed by exiled political director Muhsin Makhmalbaf, was banned in Iran on the grounds that it was deemed “subversive.” The movie earned Makhmalbaf an award in the “Un Certain Regard” category at the Cannes Film Festival, and also won two awards at the Sitges International Film Festival, and was nominated for an Oscar as the Iranian entry at the Academy Awards.

An elderly couple are quarreling and cleaning their gabbeh (an intricately designed carpet) when something unexpected happens. As if falling from the sky, a young woman suddenly appears next to them and helps the elderly couple clean the carpet. This young woman is from the tribe depicted in the historic gabbeh design, and the carpet tells an emotional story of the young woman’s life.

information about Gabbeh (1996):

Director: Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Cast: Shaghayeh Djodat, Hossein Moharami, Rogheih Moharami
Release Year: 1996
Duration: 75 minutes
Country: Iran
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Romance
Language: Persian
Age Rating: N/A
Available Platforms: N/A
IMDb Rating: 7.4/10
Similar Movies: The Color of Paradise (1999), The White Balloon (1995)
Trailer: Watch the Trailer on YouTube
IMDb Link: Gabbeh on IMDb

3.Offside

Another Iranian movie, Offside, from 2006, was filmed in Iran but was banned from release. Offside’s director, Jafar Panahi, won the Silver Bear, the Grand Jury Prize, at the Berlin International Film Festival. Panahi made the following statements about his movie, which was banned because it criticized restrictions on women’s rights and freedoms:

“When ‘Offside’ was banned, two days later there were copies of the movie on DVD all over the country. So now the government has intensified its surveillance of the movies it has banned.”

In Iran, women are officially forbidden from participating in men’s sports competitions. In June 2005, the Iranian national football team played a key World Cup qualifier against Bahrain at the Azadi Stadium. A group of Iranian girls dressed as boys and tried to enter the stadium, and misfortune ensued. Offside, full of comedy and violence, was shot during the real Iran-Bahrain match in Tehran in 2005. The movie is a tribute to the legitimate struggle of all women for their rights and freedoms.

Information about Offside (2006):

Director: Jafar Panahi
Cast: Sima Mobarak-Shahi, Shayesteh Irani, Ayda Sadeqi
Release Year: 2006
Duration: 93 minutes
Country: Iran
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Sport
Language: Persian
Age Rating: N/A
Available Platforms: N/A
IMDb Rating: 7.3/10
Similar Movies: The Circle (2000), The Salesman (2016)
Trailer: Watch the Trailer on YouTube
IMDb Link: Offside on IMDb

4.The Circle

The Circle is one of the productions that brought fame to the master director Jafar Panahi, who has faced numerous arrests and censorship. This unique cinematic work was banned by the government on the grounds that it criticized the Islamic Regime’s oppression and prohibitions against women. The Circle, which won the FIPRESCI award at the San Sebastian International Film Festival, holds an important place among the modern classics of Iranian cinema.

In a hospital waiting room, a woman learns that her daughter, Solmaz Gholami, has just given birth. When it turns out that the baby is a girl, the happiness is shattered as the groom’s family knows that he will abandon Solmaz, who is about to give birth. Meanwhile, three women who have escaped from prison set out on the crowded streets of Tehran, where women are not allowed to go out on their own or smoke in public. They will encounter many challenges on this journey, and their paths will intersect with the stories of other women. The Circle has a powerful script that addresses a pervasive sense of hopelessness and injustice within the framework of family and friendship.

Information about The Circle (2000):

Director: Jafar Panahi
Cast: Niki Karimi, Mohammad Reza Golzar, Fatemeh Motamed-Arya
Release Year: 2000
Duration: 90 minutes
Country: Iran
Genre: Drama
Language: Persian
Age Rating: N/A
Available Platforms: N/A
IMDb Rating: 7.5/10
Similar Movies: Offside (2006), The Salesman (2016)
Trailer: Watch the Trailer on YouTube
IMDb Link: The Circle on IMDb

5.Ten/Dah

Nominated for the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival, Dah is a 2002 drama movie directed by Iranian master director Abbas Kiarostami. Banned by the Iranian regime because of its critical view of gender discrimination, Dah is an important work of cinema that was included in the BBC’s “100 Best Films of the 21st Century” list.

Dah focuses on ten conversations between a female driver and her passengers in Tehran. Their discussions with an abandoned bride and her young son, a young woman who makes a living through prostitution, another woman who goes to prayer, and many others shed light on the lives and feelings of these women whose voices are rarely heard. This work, which can be considered a social study, combines emotional intensity with the art of social realism in cinema.

Information about Ten (2002):

Director: Abbas Kiarostami
Cast: Mania Akbari, Amin Maher, Ramin Darei
Release Year: 2002
Duration: 90 minutes
Country: Iran
Genre: Drama
Language: Persian
Age Rating: N/A
Available Platforms: N/A
IMDb Rating: 7.3/10
Similar Movies: Taste of Cherry (1997), Close-Up (1990)
Trailer: Watch the Trailer on YouTube
IMDb Link: Ten on IMDb

6.Crimson Gold

Following the previous movie by master director Jafar Panahi, The Circle, the authorities of the Iranian regime also banned Crimson Gold. The movie was banned in Iran, and ironically, every time the director watched it elsewhere, he was considered to have broken the law. Jafar Panahi was caught and detained at the airport while returning from the Moscow Film Festival, where Crimson Gold was also screened. Panahi was released after emphasizing that he was not a political figure, but an artist who was only interested in social issues. While The Circle is seen as a bold criticism against the second-class citizen status accorded to women in Iran, Crimson Gold draws attention to what can be called a “crisis of masculinity” among the grassroots male population.

For Hüseyin, who works as a pizza delivery man, the injustice of the system that holds society captive is what he encounters in his life, no matter where he turns. One day, when his friend Ali shows him the contents of a lost wallet he found, Hüseyin discovers a payment receipt and cannot believe the huge amount someone spent to buy an expensive necklace. Knowing that his poor salary will never be enough to afford such luxury, Hüseyin suffers another blow in his already depressed life. His job, which allows him to see the irreconcilable contrast between the rich and the poor, causes him to ride his motorcycle every night to neighborhoods he could never live in, in order to see more closely what goes on behind closed doors. However, one night, just before his deep feelings of humiliation lead him to a turning point, Hüseyin will find the opportunity for a luxurious life right at his feet.

7.There Is No Evil

There Is No Evil, the latest feature movie by Golden Orange award-winning director Mohammad Rasoulof, who has had his passport confiscated and has been arrested many times due to the content of his movies and the messages they convey to audiences, is another Iranian movie that was banned due to its themes criticizing the Iranian government’s use of the death penalty. The movie won the Golden Bear for “Best Film” at the Berlin International Film Festival and received an award in the same category at the Sydney Film Festival. Regarding the movie, which was cited as the reason for the director, Mohammad Rasoulof, being temporarily banned from filming in the country, being sentenced to prison, and being banned from traveling abroad, Rasoulof makes the following statements:

“The movie you are about to watch is about people taking responsibility for their actions, and every story in the movie is based on my own personal experiences.”

There Is No Evil is a series of four short stories that contain metaphors and cleverly disguised allegories about the death penalty and how it poisons the soul and conscience of the country. Hundreds of people, including children, are executed in Iran every year. The punishment of convicted criminals is the job of civil servants, but it is also commonly carried out by conscripted soldiers. The storytelling technique is unique, and Rasoulof’s anger and nausea at state-sanctioned murder give the movie its spirit.

Information about There Is No Evil (2020):

Director: Mohammad Rasoulof
Cast: Mohammad Valizadegan, Shaghayegh Farahani, Mahtab Servati
Release Year: 2020
Duration: 154 minutes
Country: Iran
Genre: Drama
Language: Persian
Age Rating: N/A
Available Platforms: N/A
IMDb Rating: 7.9/10
Similar Movies: The Salesman (2016), A Separation (2011)
Trailer: Watch the Trailer on YouTube
IMDb Link: There Is No Evil on IMDb

8.A Moment of Innocence

Another Iranian movie written and directed by Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Bread and Flowers is the director’s semi-autobiographical masterpiece. The implicit message of the movie—that “different people can experience the same event in different ways”—was deemed subversive enough by Iranian authorities to ban the movie. “A Moment of Innocence,” which won an Honorable Mention at the Locarno International Film Festival, also premiered at the festival.

A forty-year-old former police officer goes to Tehran to meet with the famous director Makhmalbaf and to act in his latest movie. Twenty years ago, Makhmalbaf stabbed this police officer with a knife in order to disarm him and act in self-defense. Makhmalbaf, who would be arrested while fighting against the Shah’s regime, was released after serving a few years in prison. Twenty years later, he would track down the police officer he injured again. With this movie, which he directed and has autobiographical elements, Makhmalbaf will recreate his story and the events he experienced cinematically.

Information about A Moment of Innocence (1996):

Director: Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Cast: Ali Bakhsi, Bahram Beizai, Farkhondeh Khosravi
Release Year: 1996
Duration: 90 minutes
Country: Iran
Genre: Drama, Biography
Language: Persian
Age Rating: N/A
Available Platforms: N/A
IMDb Rating: 7.9/10
Similar Movies: The Silence (1998), Kandahar (2001)
Trailer: Watch the Trailer on YouTube
IMDb Link: A Moment of Innocence on IMDb

9.The Lizard

Marmoulak, which was selected as the Best Asian Movie at the Montreal World Film Festival and won the Best Movie, Best Screenplay, and Best Actor in a Leading Role awards at the Fajr International Film Festival, one of the most important movie festivals held in Tehran, the capital of Iran, was withdrawn from screenings two weeks after its premiere in Iran on the grounds that it ironically criticized the conservative attitudes of Iranian clerics. This ban was only lifted in 2019 when the relevant ministry granted a license allowing access to the movie over the internet. Directed by Kemal Tabrizi, who has directed many movies considered to be among the most competent works of Iranian cinema, the movie was adapted into a series on ATV(Turkish Chanel) in 2014 under the name “The Lizard” and met with the audience.

Marmoulak is a political critique of the Iranian clergy that came to power after the Islamic Revolution. Reza (Parviz Parastui), who is on trial for a common crime, meets a cleric during his time in prison and begins to outline an escape plan in his mind. Reza will step into freedom by wearing the robe of the cleric he has just met. However, he will soon see that being a cleric will not garner the respect he expects from the people. While planning to escape the country, Reza begins to pass through villages far from the cities during his journey. However, when the villagers accept him into their congregation and expect him to fulfill his religious duties as a cleric, he will see that his plans do not go as he expected. Will Reza’s escape from prison make him powerful in the eyes of the society he lives in?