Wake up Westerners

You must not have watched the bonus features. This was guerilla filmmaking. The director submitted a false script under a false name to the "powers that be" that control whether a film can be made. His cover was blown 5 days prior to finishing the film, but he was lucky and was able to finish. Permission to show this film in Iranian theaters was denied.

"Secondly this is a story about girls wanting to see a soccer game. It is not about how women are subjugated subservient scum in a backward society."
Yes, you are right, this is a movie about girls wanting to see the game live. However, they DON'T? And why? Because their society denies them equal rights! And about what, about football! For Christ's sake (I wanted to use the prophet's name here instead of Jesus, but that would be a blasphemy, right?), football does not erode one's moral character -- on the contrary.
In the end, the movie's message come down to swearing. Girls would be allowed into the stadium to sit in a different section, if only men didn't swear. Why would men be allowed to show bad behavior and women not? This is called hypocricy.

"This is the equivalent of underage kids in the US sneaking into a bar to see their favorite band by using a fake ID. That always sound pretty odd to Europeans, who are able to drink at a much younger age. Are US kids a victim of evil puritanical laws?"
Yes, Europeans find the American drinking age a pretty stupid idea. However, no matter whether you like the rule, it applies to each and every person in America. Men and women, black and white, Barcelona supporters and Juventus supporters only subjected to this rule while they are young.
In the movie they remind us that "men and women are different". They mention it when the girl wants to go to the restroom and there are only men's restrooms in the stadium. Well, in the movie the girl had no problem using a men's restroom.

"These girls are obviously not being carted away to a torture chamber"

The girls are being carted away to the vice squad. Nobody actually knows what awaits them there. One of them is convinced she is going to be shot.

Hey guys, I am 21 yrs Saudi, I've been to Iran(many cities including Shiraz , Tehran and the northern areas) and generally speaking the people there are more conservative than Saudi Arabia. On the other hand, they have more freedom! Out there, you can criticize the government without being afraid, but in the retard Arab countries no body can do it.
I'm saying that to be religiously conservative doesn't mean dictatorship!

Excuse my English , I'm not native :)

I've never agreed with anyone so wholeheartedly than with the OP. Stop political bs and enjoy the film.

Even stomach started to hurt when I read the hypocrisy displayed in the comments.


The Apple Scruffs Corps, 05
and polygones

I am baffled and angered by so much hypocrisy and hubris from the arrogant Northern colonial nations especially the UglySadisticArrogant (USA) about the so-called gender equality. If this opportunist, slanted director (Panaahi) who only panders to Northern viewers (for obvious reasons) had been under any pressure or censorship, he wouldn't have been able to even start this project. I don't see millions of women demonstrating to get into the stadia anyhow; the reason is they are simply too dangerous and inappropriate places. I myself think this rule must be changed and don't always agree w/ the system's laws and behaviour. However, on my land, I decide what stands and what does not (no foreign interference desired)!

Strangely, all these nonsensical claims come from cultures drowned in jingoism, racism, xenophobia, drugs, alcohol, wife and spousal abuse, date rape, and yes the ultimate low of all lows INCEST (i.e. actively and w/ no regards for supposed "human rights" raping their own family members)!! Not to mention invading dozens of innocent countries so far and engulfing them in their hellish fire and rage of supremacy, control and greed. Well, I am glad the Islamic Republic and the glorious revolution (along w/ friendly nations such as Cuba, Venezuela) don't invade others and don't have millions of peoples' blood on their hands. The Americans and their allies in Europe living in their self-satisfied cesspools should clean up their own huge mess before lecturing other cultures. Alas, you will never recover from your eternal, terminal illness: selective conscience and selective memory

Glorious beacon of freedom that is the USA ? A country where in some states it's easier to own a gun than it is to buy a drink ? Where racism is still rampant ? How can that be freedom ? Give me a break. Don't hold up your good old U S of A as a beacon of freedom like it's some sort of utopia. The world is a very unequal place, some places more than others. But please don't patronise us into thinking the United States is some sort of flag bearer in this regard.

Indeed, Iran is way too demonized now in Europe as well, while at the same time we cooperate with worse regimes which are useful to our greed.

To give an example, I lived in Sri Lanka for a while and in that country filmmakers critical of the current nationalist-socialist-buddhist regime would have been shot a long time ago. The assassination would have been done by 2 unidentified gunmen who would have passed through a series of high security check-points without anyone actually checking them for assault rifles or bombs. Then government would conclude an unsuccesful investigation;)
That's what usually happens to journalists there, since noone has yet had the guts to actually make a movie critical of the country...

And where I live in Europe - Slovenia, we have a state agency that funds a film or 2 a year in our language. Only after the conservative christians, most of which are members of the so-called Democratic Party (I'm not kidding sadly) came to power, they stopped the production as the new people in charge claimed proposed films were too pornographic (!!) ... Pornographic means maybe that a breast is seen...

And at the same time most freethinking journalists lost their jobs after the conservatives' allies took charge of the companies having most shares of important media houses...

Sorry for mediocre english, but I believe the message was clear enough. Don't have any black/white ideas about our freedoms in the "west"...