Desert Dancer

Parental Rating: PG-13

Contains: Violence    Drug Use    Adult Content    

Jill's Review

Opens April 17, 2015

Runs 98 minutes

In Iran, after the revolution, most Western things were banned, including dancing. This movie is based on Afshin Ghaffarian (Reece Ritchie) who grew up loving dance and attending a semi-secret school for the arts. There he learned about movies and acting and especially dance. He longed to be a performer. Eventually, he attended the University in Tehran and met some other like minded students, including Elaheh (Freida Pinto) a troubled beauty. Together they formed an underground dance company. Their dream was to be able to perform for others. Set against the re-election of Ahmadinejad, these students hoped for a reform government but it was not to be. They decided to stage a performance in the desert, away from the morality police. There they performed and felt free for the first time. Of course, their involvement with subversive activities drew attention and Afshin was forced to flee for his life to Paris. There he was able to attend a dance academy and live a free life, although he has yet to be able to return to Iran.

I thought this movie was very interesting. The students seemed to be able to move around fairly freely and could mingle with the opposite sex. But, they were forced underground for all artistic activities. And, they had to constantly look over their shoulders for the morality police. No holdng hands. No kissing in public. No dancing. Iran seems like a scary place. Afshin and his group were extremely brave (and crazy) to form their dance group and actually perform for others, any one of whom could turn them in. I enjoy movies that show what it is like in other cultures, so I thought this one was pretty good. True story, so that made it a little better. If you go, stay for the credits and get a brief glimpse of the real Afshin. Worth a matinee at least.

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