A defiant battle against a monolithic, insidious justice system.
Savagely confronting yet ultimately inspiring, Steffi Niederzoll’s urgent feature debut lays bare both the brutal and the subtle methods of the Iranian regime. In 2007, 19-year-old Tehrani interior designer Reyhaneh Jabbari stabs and kills her attempted rapist, a would-be client. Despite evidence that the crime was in self-defence, the influence of the deceased man’s former employer, the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence, is felt through the legal process. The patriarchy closes ranks; a moderate judge is replaced with a former Revolutionary Guard and Reyhaneh is convicted to death by hanging under Sharia law by blood revenge. Meticulously pieced together through intimate home videos smuggled out of the country, prison letters, and family interviews, Reyhaneh’s seven-year heart-wrenching but hopeful ordeal on death row is an inspiring story of resilience against systemic oppression.
“A deep, dignified and nuanced human story of a conflicted, violent society.” (Cineuropa)
This film is co-presented in partnership with the Adelaide Festival Centre’s OzAsia Festival