The Seed of the Sacred Fig (M) – 168 minutes

Set in Tehran, this Oscar nominated film for Best International Feature is a distressing, but compelling watch.

For the past 20 years, lawyer Iman (Missagh Zareh) has worked for the authoritarian regime in Iran.

Now, to the delight of his wife Najmeh (Soheila Golestani), he has been rewarded with an upgraded position as an investigator to the Revolutionary Court.

The extra pay will mean the family can move to a three-bedroom home in a better neighbourhood.

Iman and Najmeh have two daughters, 21-year-old Resvan (Mahsa Rostami) and her younger sister Sana (Setareh Maleki), who currently share a room.

With Iman’s upgraded position comes greater risk, so Iman and his wife are at pains to point out to the girls that should be conservative and tow the line.

Much to his wife’s chagrin, Iman is even given a gun, which he carries with him.

This is a time of unrest. Civil disobedience is escalating, after the death of a young woman.

While the conceit of this film is fictional, what happened in real life on 16th September, 2022 is not.

That is when Jina Mahsa Amini, an Iranian woman in her early 20s, died unexpectedly while in custody for wearing “improper” clothing.

The incident sparked outrage in Iran, igniting a sustained and widespread protest movement.

In the movie, Iman’s promotion coincides with student demonstrations, chanting on the streets and remonstrations against the compulsory wearing of the hijab.

Resvan’s college friend Sadaf (Niousha Akhshi), who Najmeh urges her daughter to steer clear of, is caught up in the mayhem, emerging injured and bloodied.

But worse is to follow for Sadaf.

Iman learns the real reason he was given a leg up, namely the expectation that he will sign off on death sentences for the accused on the say so of the prosecutor.

And then, less than a fortnight into the new job, Iman’s gun goes missing from his home, which threatens to undermine his standing and see him jailed.

His family gets caught up in the backlash in a way they could not have imagined. Nor could we, in the West.

To add realism, writer and director Mohammad Rasoulof has used actual vision of 2022/23 protests, which were violently suppressed by Iranian authorities.

Nominated for the Palme d'Or, The Seed of the Sacred Fig received the Special Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 2024.

Shot in secret and resulting in the persecution of independent filmmaker Rasoulof, he was forced to flee Iran.

Now living in exile in Europe, ahead of the movie’s premiere, Iranian authorities sentenced him to eight years imprisonment.

The title, The Seed of the Sacred Fig refers to a species of fig that spreads by wrapping itself around another tree and eventually strangling it.

It is seen as a symbol of the theocratic regime in Iran, namely a system of government in which rulers invoke the name of God.

It is a gently paced, but powerful, unrelenting film, with intimidation in one form or another a constant.

There is the political and religious imperative by the hardline establishment, along with the subjugation of women and modern ways of thinking.

Rasoulof keeps tightening the noose around the family, until it snaps and the tension is palpable.

The movie has a claustrophobic, insular feel.

In keeping with the strength of the narrative, the acting is potent.

I will single out Soheila Golestani as Iman’s devout and devoted wife, who is challenged by her children.

In fact, you witness the pressure building on her, her husband and their daughters.

Missagh Zareh shuts down and then becomes combative as Iman, while as Resvan and Sena, Mahsa Rostami and Setareh Maleki find their own voices.

They are reflective of the now generation, trying to stand up to tyranny.

While the family at the core of The Seed of the Sacred Fig may be a construct, the treatment of Mohammad Rasoulof by Iran says much.

Rated M, it scores an 8½ out of 10.