Dir/Wri: Saeed Roustayi | Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi, Hassan Pourshirazi, Fereshteh Sadre Orafaiy, Maziar Seyedi | Iran Drama 131′
This fast-moving modern melodrama certainly has plenty going on for an extended family in Tehran. With its buzzing energy, layered performances, confident direction and slick production values (by modern Iranian standards) Mother and Child is an entertaining film with a gripping storyline and stands a good chance of winning a prize in the Palme d’Or competition at Cannes Film Festival 2025.
Single mother Mahnaz (Izadyar) and her boyfriend Hamid (Maadi) have a flirty relationship and busy jobs in the local hospital. Hamid is keen to marry, and have kids to improve his inheritance chances, but Mahnaz already has her hands full with a little daughter and an adored 13-year-old who she treats more like a younger brother than a naughty teenager.
Mahnaz, her kids and her younger sister and mother are confined to a cramped dingy flat where the boy runs riot on his phone all day. A crafty bully he disrespects authority, in short, he’s a really nasty piece of work who has even started gambling with his classmates. No prizes for guessing who wins. But Mahnaz, a doe-eyed ingenue worships the ground he walks on until tragedy forces her to fight for her rights in this staunchly patriarchal system. With plenty of twists and turns this is an intricate and artful feature. @MeredithTaylor
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | COMPETITION 2025