Taraneh Alidoosti, an Iranian actress, has gained international recognition, mainly because of her roles in Asghar Farhadi’s films. The Tehran-born actress pursued and studied acting until she was cast as 15-year-old Taraneh in the 2002 film I’m Taraneh. For her role as a 15-year-old in that film, Alidoosti garnered plaudits from critics all over the world and even took home awards at film festivals. Since then, Alidoosti has been playing in Iranian plays and films, showcasing her aptitude and talent for acting in general rather than simply in movies.
She has gained the most notoriety, nevertheless, for her roles in Asghar Farhadi’s films. She collaborated with the filmmaker for the first time on his 2003 film The Beautiful City, and since then she has frequently starred in his productions. She played the major role in Shahrzad, a popular Persian-language television series that lasted from 2015 to 2018 and was based on the 1953 overthrow of Iran’s then-president by the democratically elected Mosaddegh. Despite being an activist, Alidoosti appeared in two significant Iranian films in 2022 alone. The Iranian government has detained the actress several times as a result of her demonstrations in support of women’s rights and equality, including those that took place during the 2022 national protests. Here is a list of Taraneh Alidoosti’s top films to date.
About Elly
Another of Farhadi’s films, About Elly, was published in 2009. Shahab Hosseini, Golshifteh Farahani, and Alidoosti are the stars of a mystery that explores what it means to be a middle-class wife. Things start off poorly when a mother (Farahani) invites an elementary school teacher (Alidoosti), as the lodging they reserved turns out to be unavailable. Unfazed, they carry on with their vacation, but after the teacher goes missing while minding a child, their trip turns into a complete nightmare.
Atom Heart Mother
The 2013 film Atom Heart Mother is set during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s presidency of Iran, notably the creation of the Subsidy Reform Plan to help improve Iran’s economic status. Two dear buddies who are leaving a party late at night are portrayed by Pegah Ahangarani and Alidoosti. After meeting a friend, they get involved in an automobile accident, and things quickly turn bizarre. The man they encounter in the collision keeps showing up and discussing political matters as well as existing concerns in Iran. He keeps showing up to them as the night wears on as the two friends navigate the streets, taking the movie into strange territory.
Beautiful City
One of Farhadi’s earliest films, Beautiful City, marked their first joint effort with the youthful Alidoosti. It was only her second film after I’m Taraneh, 15, and it received recognition at the start of her career for both her and Farhadi. The opening scene of The Beautiful City takes place in a jail as Akbar, an 18-year-old teenager, celebrates his birthday. The day Akbar is to be put to death, his friend on the outside is attempting to have the execution order halted. Akbar was 16 years old when he was sentenced to death for murder. The story then introduces a little girl (Alidoosti), illustrating the double standards of the time they are living in and the shortcomings of Iran’s criminal justice system.
Doubt
The Iranian-Armenian director Varuzh Karim-Masihi’s 2009 film Doubt, titled Tordid in Farsi, stars Bahram Radan and Alidoosti. The plot of this story is heavily influenced by the Shakespeare play Hamlet, as the main character begins to see parallels between his own life and that of Hamlet. More suspiciously than it first appears, his father commits suicide, leaving his uncle in command of the family’s money. The son resolves to attempt to alter their fortunes before it’s too late when he learns that his uncle will marry his mother and therefore join the family. He believes that knowing how Hamlet works will work in his favor and help him conquer the obstacles arising because he has his best buddy by his side.
Fireworks Wednesday
The Farhadi-directed film Fireworks Wednesday was released in 2006. Hedieh Tehrani, Alidoosti, and Hamid Haroknezhad play the main parts in the film. Tehran and Haroknezhad are a couple that are having marital difficulties. They are getting ready to go for Dubai at the beginning of the film, but first the Chaharshanbe Suri holiday is quickly coming. The two employ a maid because it is customary to clean before it, and the maid learns that both the husband and wife are involved in questionable activities. The multi-layered narrative of Fireworks Wednesday examines the privileges and differences enjoyed by middle-class and working-class Iranians in modern Iran. Despite being one of Farhadi’s less well-known films, it demonstrates his abilities as a filmmaker.
Leila’s Brothers
Leila’s Brothers had its debut at the Cannes Film Festival in 2022, despite having a contentious beginning due to sexual assault allegations against two of the movie’s performers. The cast’s criticisms regarding the regime while at Cannes led to the movie being prohibited in Iran as well. In Leila’s Brothers, a 40-year-old woman named Leila (Alidoosti) is highlighted for her lifelong dedication to caring for her brothers and family. Leila believes the family needs to create a business in order to survive as their condition becomes more desperate and they face falling into poverty. This film explores sacrifice as well as the difficulties that ordinary Iranians today confront as a result of international sanctions.
Modest Reception
The 2012 film Modest Reception was written and directed by actor, writer, and director Mani Haghighi, who also had a key role. The other star of this understated movie is Alidoosti. Together, they play a couple who decides to leave the city and travel through rural Iran. They start giving money to strangers if they comply with their instructions when they get to the smaller towns and villages in Iran’s mountainous region. Throughout the film, these requests become increasingly bizarre, raising further questions about their intentions. Though their motives may not be as pure as they appear, their appearance of bestowing good fortune may merely be a charade. While Modest Reception may not have all the answers viewers are looking for, it does reveal a lot about Iran that most people outside of Iran are unaware of.
Shirin
The actress Shirin Alidoosti has a very little part in Abbas Kiarostami’s film Shirin. This was one of Kiarostami’s final works produced while he was still in Iran, and it was released in 2009. Shirin, which stars 100 females, many of whom are well-known in Iran, together with the French actress Juliette Binoche, may be considered to have a somewhat thin plot by some. They are watching a movie about Shirin, a character from Persian mythology, and her love affair with Khosrow. Shirin explores the issues of female spectatorship and cinema because the actresses weren’t aware of what they were witnessing while the movie was being filmed.
Subtraction
The 2022 Toronto International Film Festival had the world premiere of Iranian director Mani Haghighi’s Subtraction, which was eagerly anticipated. Alidoosti plays a young woman who works as a driving instructor in Subtraction. At first glance, their marriage appears to be regular, but she soon becomes uneasy when she witnesses her spouse entering the home of a complete stranger, notably a lady. They ultimately learn that there is a couple who resembles them in the real world, which causes the plot of the film to take a completely new course.
The Salesman
As one of the rare directors to have won the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film twice, Farhadi won his second Oscar for the 2016 film The Salesman. A young theater couple, played by Alidoosti and Shahab Hosseini, is forced to move after an earthquake causes their residence in Tehran to crumble. They take part in Death of a Salesman rehearsals and rent a new apartment on top of a building, but one night Alidoosti’s character is attacked in the shower. While continuing to work and dealing with the anguish that was produced, Hosseini’s character sets out to find the offender in order to exact retribution. The movie, which takes its title from the Arthur Miller play, makes a number of oblique links between the experiences of the characters and these literary works.
