The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

I had heard good things about this movie and I had wanted to see it for years. Finally, I watched it and could not be more disappointed. As an Indian woman who grew up in India and moved to the United States in early adulthood, I can identify with many elements of the Iranian youth culture as well as the western elements in the movie. The big problem with the movie is that many scenes are forced and contrived in an unreal way. And most of the time this forced language is used to make some obvious point that women are suppressed by the men. For example, there is one scene where Mehran says "I'll control my wife, you control your daughter". Never in my life have I heard a man directly say that to another man! And it is hard to imagine that a man would such a thing directly, especially in the type of society/family mehran comes from which is wealthy and well educated. Certainly, control is exercised over the women but it is more subtle and nuanced than that. It is the same way in India and that is why I can identify with this situation. It is almost as if the writer felt she HAD to use such direct land pedantic language because the audience is a fool and won't be able to pick up on subtleties. It is very clear that the film is made for a western audience. If you actually live in Iran or a similar type of culture, you would know that the story line is just bullshit and far from reality. I thought that the writer and director would be Iranian, but after I saw the movie I immediately knew that she must be an Iranian living in the west (without even looking it up). It reeks of the air of superiority that many US directors have when they make films about a foreign culture. The director tried to show that the west is more progressive and "free" because of movies like "Milk" and "Sex and the City". In the scene where the Iranian girls are trying to dub these movies in Farsi, the writer is implying that these western movies are the only outlet they have through which they can start a dialogue about being gay. The idea is good and has lots of scope, but it falls flat when it comes to story line development and capturing the real subtleties of Iranian/Asian culture. Instead of doing a service to the gay community in Iran, I think the writer has done an absolute disservice to the youth of Iran and women in Iran, by trying to show that they can only be considered "free" or progressive when they ape western habits. When really, a woman can be free and independent by many means possible, even while wearing a hijab. I kept waiting for the character development to happen, but it never materializes and the end of the movie just left me feeling empty. Very anti-climatic. If I had a chance to meet the director, I would make sure she knew that she should be ashamed for pandering the the US audience and failing to capture her own culture in all the complexity it has - both the beauty as well as the harsh realities.

Atafeh has wealthy relatively liberal Iranian parents. She attends parties with her best friend orphan Shireen. They rebel and start a sexual affair. They join other kids to make an outlaw movie. Atafeh's older brother Mehran is a recovering drug addict. He's unemployed and finds support in a mosque. He becomes increasingly religious and installs surveillance cameras in the family home. He's obsessed with Shireen and pushes to marry her. Atafeh's father also faces religious pressure and starts to join his son.The first half isn't anything special. The lesbian affair doesn't feel real. The relationship feels manufactured. Mehran's turn is more compelling. It is sinister and scary. The last act has some good dark turns. I don't think it works completely but it has some good drama.

Just watched this. If this is what Iran is like even slightly I am extremely glad I don't live there. Beautiful settings, but several things got to me - the beach where men were wandering into the sea in budgie smugglers and shorts while the women were not swimming and covered head to foot. Then there was the notion of a man saying something in public about controlling his wife without people looking at him as though he is a bit psycho. The morality police was a surprise, and the idea that women who drive can be pulled over by the police - I am not sure if it was the stereo was on or because they were women. I knew about the having to have a male relatives permission to travel.. It seems extremely repressive to me, but there are definitely lighter moments. I rather liked the idea of coats and veils hiding dance clothes, and the parents were lovely.

This is a story of nothing more than two shallow brainless vane (classic) teenage girls who discover ego and feel sorry for themselves. I imagine most females, teen or adult, will not relate to this one. These two young women do nothing but wander and wonder and try to look pretty (desparately.) It was so objectifying of the female gender that I was surprised to see that a women had a hand in the creation of this one. And the lesbian aspect was just so far fetched. I mean, was the author of this script TRYING to detach from 99% of the female society? I imagine she herself must be a shallow vain personality of little substance who uses sexuality as a form of power. I just didn't get this movie. Didn't relate to it.