Hadrina The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Loui Blair It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

Lela The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

Scarlet The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Sohrab Rahimi I first saw this film in Malmö Film Festival 2006th A very interesting Iranian film by the female director Mania Akbari. The actors perform their roles with great reality and it makes the film affects the audience deeply. It may be uncomfortable at times because of sincerity that patients are explored. A new generation of Iranian films has been born. Here we see that the couple has relationship and marital problems similar to those found in Western countries. It could be about jealousy, abortion. It can be about dancing with another person, homosexuality, sexuality, free relationships and so on. In this film we see a different picture than we're used to from newspapers and televisions. We meet a modern Iran with modern society's problems. This is a wonderful change that is on the process in Iran and Iranian films. Mania Akbari is leading in that way. This is an excellent film with a very high performance.Sohrab Rahimi

runamokprods An interesting experimental Iranian film, shot on DV, with shades of John Cassavettes. A series of 7 vignettes about married couples. Each story is about different couple, but all are played by the same two actors. Each scene is one shot only, mostly close ups panning back and forth, while the couple is on some mode of transportation (a motorbike, a train, a ski lift). The acting has a rough, improvisational feel, that works very well for the most part. The only negative is that the film starts to get repetitive in theme as well as style. Each story is about women being repressed in some way, and while I understand that's an important theme (in Iran, but really anywhere) I wish it had covered more elements of how couples relate. Still, I'm glad I saw it.

Rob Brown (cinephiliac) 20 Fingers strives to portray events in a realistic manner. Everything contributes to this concept. The conversations are seen in their entirety in long takes, shot in natural (practical) lighting and in real-world locations with 'stolen' footage. The sense that this is a film about a real Iran is palpable and exciting, even given Iranian cinema's usual favoured realism. Out of this, one response is to question if there is an actual narrative to the events, or whether these are simply snapshots. It is very difficult to place the conversations in an order, so this seems to obstruct an attempt at creating a 'story' out of these events. This only serves to increase the realism – after all, real life does not run to any pre-conceived plot. However, the realism means that this relationship is assumed to continue after each fade to black, so the conversations that are shown may construe some particular meaning. Even from the first conversation there is a sense of conflict between the two. This is referred to in every conversation as jokingly 'the games we play'. One criticism I think can be levelled is the familiarity of this phrase in popular culture, certainly western culture, and so in some moments its inclusion can seem a little trite – though perhaps the fault lies in a lazy translation. However, obviously the idea of the relationship being a game runs throughout, and this lies in stark contrast to the perception of Iran as a formal, strict society.As a film made for foreign audiences, the on-screen relationship of the two actors, dynamic and amusing and often violent, is an undeniable eye-opener.

suzantalakis I first saw this film at Vancouver Film Festival 2004. A very interesting Iranian film by woman director Mania Akbari, previously known for her role in Ten by Abbas Kiarostami. A couple: Bijan Daneshmand and Mania Akbari perform their roles with such reality that I was feeling as though I was present. One feels uncomfortable at times due to the sincerity that subjects are explored. A change from previous Iranian films- here we see they have relationship and marital problems similar to those we have in the West. Whether it is about jealousy, abortion, dancing with another person, homosexuality, sexuality and so on. In the West the image we have of the East and Muslim countries is based on what we see on the news and the odd documentary. This is a lovely change. An excellent film with a very high level of performance by Akbari and Daneshmand.