Reading Lolita in Tehran Review – Excellent, A Story of Rebellion and Literature, Affecting
- Details
- Category: Indies, Docs, Foreign Film
- Published on Wednesday, 08 July 2026 12:44
- Written by Janet Walker
Reading Lolita in Tehran, from Greenwich Entertainment, presents a story of how literature becomes a salve to help the women of Tehran cope as their rights are systematically restricted and they face severe and egregious injustice.
The film begins in 1979, before the regime initiated compulsory laws that forced women to wear a hijab and drape themselves in variations of the totally concealing burqa, as Professor Azar Nafisi, played by Golshifteh Farahani, returns to Iran with her husband, Bijan Nafisi, played by Arash Marandi after receiving a job offer from the university of Tehran.
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As she begins teaching, the class seating shows signs of an indoctrinated societal rules, as men sit on one side and women the other. At this first class there are no indications that a change will swiftly change everyone's life. And they are talking about The Great Gatsby. Of course, as always the F. Scott Fitzgerald novel draws sharp remarks from both sides, and the rising tide of extremism becomes evident during the discussion.
As the days go by the student uprising has many questioning anyone who does not have the same opinion, Professor's name, and her liberal western ways, the students are protesting, the male students are indoctrinated into some totalitarian cause of dominance, and then the Ayatollah, begins the compulsory squeeze of the women.
Professor Nafisi plans her own protests and refuses to wear the headscarf, as she enters the university she is detained, and by this time the boldest students have become nothing more than pawns in the governments system. A man sacrifices himself in the university, pouring gasoline on himself and lighting the match. She is finally terminated. When she attempts to see the Dean of the University she is manhandled by elder females, who perform a pat down.
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Determined to serve the student body anyway she can, she arranged to have a reading club in her home, and invites six of her most dedicated students, who enter the apartment building under the required restriction and immediately shed the scarves and with it the law that regulates them to a lessor position. Soon they are reading banned books including Lolita and Pride and Prejudice. This ushers in the second act.
As the regime tightens its grip on society, and women continue to lose their standing, becoming reduced to non-entities, subject to extreme violence, purity tests, which is seen on screen, as Sanaz, played by Zar Amir Ebrahimi, is crudely examined by a burqa wearing senior female, who remarks that her vagina appears "used" and she is then whipped, and forced to sign a confession.
Professor Nafisi remains friend with another professor, called the Magician, played by Shabaz Noshir, as the two bond over literature and enlightened minds they remember the days gone by when women and men were free to mingle, classic literature from all authors was available, when fear of change did not result in a regime so consumed of losing it identity that it strangles its most productive members of society simply to stop the advancement of knowledge.
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As the years pass, the stronghold of the Iranian regime is reaching a point where the women in Professor Nafisi's reading club are facing new realities, one, who was once in love, is now subject to spousal abuse, another is determined to escape and is forced to use black-market smugglers to get her to London. The restrictions are just becoming overwhelming.
This leads to the third act as tensions in the home flare, and is the cost of living in this country that so devalues its citizens worth the price?
Reading Lolita in Tehran is an excellent drama that highlights the geopolitical temperature across the decades in Iran, and the tragedy of what the world has lost as the voices of so many talented, and educated women are lost to fear.
The ensemble cast deliver brilliant and emotionally affecting performances. There are strong character arc's throughout, from the women who rebelled and those who become indoctrinated, which drove them to pivotal crucible moments.
Poignant, expressive Reading Lolita in Tehran opens in New York on July 10, and in Los Angeles and select markets nationwide July 17, 2026. It is a must see.
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Country: Italy, Israel.
Language: Persian, English, with English subtitles.
Runtime: 107 minutes.
Director: Eran Riklis.
Producer: Gianluca Curti, Moshe Edery, Eran Riklis, Michael Sharfstein, Marica Stocchi, Santo Versace.
Executive Producer: Maya Amsellem, Marjorie David, Sharon Harel, Dana Lustig, Ishay Mor, Marcello Mustilli, Schaul Scherzer, Rami Unger.
Screenplay: Marjorie David.
Screen story by: Marjorie David, Eran Riklis, based on the novel of the same name by Azar Nafisi.
Cast: Golshifteh Farahani, Zar Amir Ebrahimi, Mina Kavani, Reza Diako, Arash Marandi, Catayoune Ahmadi, Sina Parvaneh, Bahar Beihaghi, Abbas Fasael, Isabella Nefar, Raha Rahbari, Rita, Lara Wolf, Ash Goldeh, Zanyar Mohammadi.
Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade. A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five screenplays "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She has also published "Unholy Alliances: A True Crime Story," and "Days, Times, Seasons, and Events: A Collection of Poetry & Prose," which can be purchased here. She is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a member of the International Federation of Journalists.
