Beautiful, interesting, incredible cinema.

See what’s playing
Yalda, a Night for Forgiveness
Yalda, a Night for Forgiveness
7.5
/10
557 Ratings

YALDA, A NIGHT FOR FORGIVENESS

Yalda

Directed by Massoud Bakhshi
Iran, France, 2019
Drama

Synopsis

Maryam accidentally kills her husband Nasser and is sentenced to death. The only person who can save her is Mona, Nasser’s daughter. All Mona has to do is appear on a TV show and forgive Maryam. But forgiveness proves difficult when they are forced to relive the past.

Synopsis

Maryam accidentally kills her husband Nasser and is sentenced to death. The only person who can save her is Mona, Nasser’s daughter. All Mona has to do is appear on a TV show and forgive Maryam. But forgiveness proves difficult when they are forced to relive the past.

Our take

A fierce critique of reality-show culture and Iranian society, Massoud Bakhshi’s film won the Grand Jury Prize for World Cinema at Sundance. Inspired by a real top-rating TV program, this thorny morality tale has the intensity of a riveting courtroom drama, questioning the idea of “public justice.”