Circumstance

R

Released Aug 26, 2011

1h 45m

Drama

LGBTQ+

List

86%

Tomatometer

79 Reviews

68%

Audience Score

5,000+ Ratings

An Iranian teenager (Nikohl Boosheri) enters a lesbian relationship, while her brother (Reza Sixo Safai) becomes dangerously obsessed with Islamic fundamentalism.

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Critics Consensus

A thought-provoking, insightful look into Iranian youth culture.

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Derek Malcolm

London Evening Standard

Keshavarz's film is both sensuous and audacious if a little uneven.

Aug 24, 2012

Full Review

Catherine Shoard

Guardian

Keshavarz uses a trowel to feed us her ideas about living under a repressive regime when all you required was a teaspoon. But she has enough promise to keep you curious for her next offering - if she can just get a lighter grip on the ladle.

Rated: 3/5

Aug 23, 2012

Full Review

Ashley Clark

Little White Lies

Bold, haunting and moving; an excellent feature debut.

Rated: 4/5

Aug 23, 2012

Full Review

David Lamble

Bay Area Reporter

The increasing fear and paranoia are temporarily offset by witty scenes of young queers dubbing a pirated version of Milk.

Jun 10, 2020

Full Review

B. Ruby Rich

Film Quarterly

With an eye for detail and atmosphere reminiscent of Mira Nair and Deepa Mehta, [Maryam] Keshavarz nimbly reworks the diaspora narrative with a fresh, stylish, sexy style.

Feb 28, 2020

Full Review

Katie Smith-Wong

Flick Feast

Circumstance is a fascinating and perceptive drama with a refreshing take on modern-day culture clashes in the Middle East.

Rated: 4/5

Nov 26, 2019

Full Review

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Naz H

This film is a masterpiece!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

It was so oppressing to watch, but this kind of movie allows revolution and people to actually feel what happens to youth. And my god Shireen is such beauty.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Circumstance is a surprisingly complex and intriguing look at Iranian lives. Various tensions between sensuality and repression, family and the state, and too many more to mention play out over the course of a short story. While not a masterpiece, Circumstance is nicely drawn and worth a look, especially if you are unfamiliar with Persian culture.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/15/23

Full Review

Serge L

Very good effort with a story based on a master treatise. Iranians live in an artificially prude world that actually protects them from the idiotic-ness of western world make efforts to go idiotic. Desire here seems superficial although love is everywhere. The story is very well balanced and i felt surprised to root for everybody in the film. May god be great. Maybe god is great. The outcome is not obvious or formulaic, but it does ring true.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

07/24/15

Full Review

Audience Member

Very good effort with a story based on a master treatise. Iranians live in an artificially prude world that actually protects them from the idiotic-ness of western world make efforts to go idiotic. Desire here seems superficial although love is everywhere. The story is very well balanced and i felt surprised to root for everybody in the film. May god be great. Maybe god is great. The outcome is not obvious or formulaic, but it does ring true.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/20/23

Full Review

Audience Member

ok romantic drama in a land where love n freedom are monitored

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/21/23

Full Review

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Maryam Keshavarz

Director

Nikohl Boosheri

Atefah

Sarah Kazemy

Shireen

Reza Sixo Safai

Mehran

Soheil Parsa

Firouz Hakimi

Nasrin Pakkho

Azar Hakimi

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Synopsis

An Iranian teenager (Nikohl Boosheri) enters a lesbian relationship, while her brother (Reza Sixo Safai) becomes dangerously obsessed with Islamic fundamentalism.

Director: Maryam Keshavarz
Producer: Maryam Keshavarz, Karin Chien
Screenwriter: Maryam Keshavarz
Distributor: Roadside Attractions
Rating: R (Sexual Content|Language|Some Drug Use)
Genre: Drama, LGBTQ+
Original Language: Persian
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 26, 2011, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 18, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $452.6K
Runtime: 1h 45m

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