Cheap Not Without My Daughter (DVD) (Sally Field, Alfred Molina) (Brian Gilbert) Price

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Customer Reviews of Not Without My Daughter

First off, the book is so much more dramatic than the movie (even though the movie attempts to do so). Sure, a picture (and a movie for that matter) is worth a thousand words, if you want the real story, then you're better off reading the book.

I must admit, the acting was rather good in this movie. Sally Field and Alfred Molina were convincing as an American trapped in a seemingly primitive society and a man torn between family and his American way of life (respectively).

However, I still think the book is much more better. Betty Mahmoody's personal account of all the abuse and suffering during her year in Iran is more effective than the movie's exaggerating, over-the-top screenplay.

The heart wrenching story of a mother's plight
"Not Without My Daughter" is the true-life story of American Betty Mahmoody (Sally Field) who married an Iranian man who had moved the US. Together they had a daughter, Mahtob. The three pay a visit to the husband's native Iran, only to learn that it is not in fact a visit but that they are there to stay, and under Iranian law Betty automatically became an Iranian citizen once she married an Iranian man, and as a woman she does not have many of the rights she is accustomed to in the USA. Betty is trapped in a world she does not understand, and she wants to return to her home. She is told that she may return to the US, but must leave the daughter in Iran. She resolves that she will return but ... not without her daughter.

I found "Not Without My Daughter" to be a gripping story because I could relate to what it is like to be in foreign lands and feel at the mercy of those around you, to be in a situation where not only do you not speak the language but the culture itself is alien. One realizes that "reality" is highly subjective. Also, a friend of mine lived through a very similar incident, albeit in the same country (luckily, my friend's father returned her to her mother in the USA). So, I myself cannot accuse this movie of being unrealistic or biased when I know that such incidents do occur. And I must add that "Not Without My Daughter" makes no secret of the fact that while it was Iranians who tried to prevent Betty Mahmoody from leaving Iran with her daughter, the people who aided Betty in doing so were also Iranian - and they are depicted as doing so at great personal risk and with no certainty of payment or personal benefit whatsoever. In fact, I found this to be the most moving aspect of the movie.

Andrew Parodi

Superb movie, and completely TRUE!!
This is one of my favorite movies. This fact based story is as close to the real thing as possible, I can personally vouch for that.

I was in Iran for almost 2 years before the Shah was kicked out in 1979 and I can tell you that every aspect of Iranian life you see in the film is absolutely true. Anyone who thinks otherwise is really full of BS, and I got a few other words for you.

This is a heart felt story of escaping evil for a mother's love of her daughter. There is nothing wrong with thie movie at all. I would recommend it to everyone, it's a real tearjerker. And the most telling part is that the whole thing actually happened.