Cheap Leila (DVD) (Dariush Mehrjui) Price

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Customer Reviews of Leila

The film itself is a powerful representation of cultural repression of women. I won't go much into the details of the story. It's fairly straightforward. A woman who is unable to conceive is convinced by her husband's mother, due to the heavy cultural value of having a male heir, to allow her husband to take a second wife. The film is essentially a display of Leila's struggle to deal with this situation.

It is a strong film. I would argue that it is a bit too long, clocking in at just over two hours. And I personally am fond of the more artsy and esoteric films of Kiarostami, so I wasn't particulaly pleased with the heavy handed melodrama of this film. But all that aside, it is a good film in its own right. Just not to my taste.

As for the DVD. This is a terrible package. Absolutely terrible. The print is horrible: washed out and spotty. The subtitles are embedded, which isn't a huge problem since most people won't want to shut them off anyway, but they were clearly transferred straight off of the same terrible film print. They are frequently misspelled and they crack and wash out on certain letters.

Not to mention the suggested retail price, which is insanely high. Criterion price for Madacy Entertainment quality; which is unforgivable price gouging by First Run Features, taking advantage of the wallets of the fans of rare foreign films. It's a film worth watching, but the quality of this DVD release is only worthy of a rental.

A MESMERIZING BIRD'S EYE VIEW INTO IRANIAN CULTURE...
This is an outstanding and compelling film with moving, superlative performances by the cast. The film chronicles the marriage of a young, Iranian couple, Leila and Reza, in modern day Tehran. They are affluent, attractive and very much in love. All is well, until they realize that Leila is barren and unable to bear children. While Leila and Reza appear to have come to terms with this, Reza's mother has not. She begins an almost daily harangue on the issue of her only son taking a second wife, a move which is perfectly legal in Iran.

The mother-in-law does not let up, appealing to Leila's sense of tradition and family obligation. Though Reza insists that he does not care if he has children, he does not stop his mother's constant harangue of Leila. Slowly but surely, Leila's resistance to the idea of a second wife begins to erode, and her mother-in-law ultimately convinces her that Reza must have a child of his blood, and as Leila cannot meet this obligation, a second wife is a must.

The film takes the viewer through the process of the selection of the second wife and Leila's role in that process. One sees the personal devastation that this causes her. One senses Reza's ambivalence about the matter and his reluctance in taking a second wife. Yet, such is the power of love and deft manipulation that both Leila and Reza continue with actions that further this cause, until the moment of truth arrives. The reality is one which is nigh unbearable.

This is an absolutely mesmerizing film. Leila Hatami, as Leila, gives a beautifully moving, well nuanced, award calibre performance. One feels the depth of her distress over this situation, and the viewer's heart breaks for her, as her own heart is breaking. Ali Mossafa is terrific as the ineffectual Reza, who is unable to stand up to his mother.

The love between Leila and Reza is palpable, and it shines throughout the film, even though the two do not physically touch during the film, as it is forbidden for them to do so publicly. Leila is shrouded in traditional style, as are all the women in the film. Yet, interestingly enough, the women are very independent, assertive, and opinionated. It is an iteresting melange of the modern with the traditional.

The film is an eloquent portrayal of the clash between the modern marriage and tradition in a country that is in a state of flux. It is an incisive look at a culture in which a second wife is an option for consideration and at the potential impact of the exercise of such an option.

All in all, this is a fantastic film that opens the window onto another culture, so different to ours in so many ways, yet so alike in others. This is a beautifully wrought film that should be seen by as many viewers as is possible. It is an absolute masterpiece. Bravo!

Tragic
Leila is a tragedy. In other words, we sense from the onset where this film is going. And there is nothing at all that will change the outcome -- it is destiny. So why wonder why Reza can't call a stop or how his mother could be so cruel? Leila has the answer: it is her fate to be have endless patience; it was written on her forehead from her birth.

Apart from the virtues of the story, I liked the way this movie shows how powerful women are within Iranian culture. For starters, it is obvious that although Leila's family is well-off, Reza's family is quite wealthy -- such a marriage, to the economic benefit of the woman, would never happen in a culture which doesn't value women. Also, all the mothers and sisters we see are very opinionated and vocal. And second marriages are permitted because of the clarity of Muslim mandates on the matter -- the Prophet himself had multiple wives; nevertheless, it is obvious that the Iranian Cosmopolites frown on the practice. And it may even explain some of this movie if you understand Islamic chain of command: first one must obey God, then one obeys God's messenger, and then one obeys one's mother.

The respect and love between Reza and Leila is touching and beautiful. They laugh and poke fun at people and make kebab together on their patio, and seem so perfectly united, which makes the foreshadowing even more poignant.

But it is Leila's nature that is the most fascinating part of this movie. Her humility and warmth when she receives gifts for her birthday, her forebearance with her mother-in-law, her anxiety as she scrubs down her house -- all of it is so real and so tragic.