Usually when people say “culture clash,” it’s an external thing. But for Leila, the clash is internal.
The Iranian-American woman hasn’t truly felt like she belonged to either culture. As a child, the American kids called her a terrorist—and when she was in Iran, the Iranian kids called her an imperialist. As for Leila, she just liked listening to Cyndi Lauper.
But Leila’s also the black sheep of her own family, too. As the only girl born into a family with many brothers, Leila’s mother, Shireen, raised her with the traditional Iranian expectations for girls: knowing how to cook and clean, for instance. But growing up in America, Leila likewise felt the Western pull of individualism, wanting to pursue things like art and basketball.
The final straw was when Leila declared herself a lesbian and brought home Elena for Thanksgiving dinner. And for that, Shireen kicked Leila out of the house. Not long after that, Elena left Leila, calling her selfish for wanting to pursue art rather than a family.
Well, as time has passed, Leila’s relationship with her family hasn’t been mended. And as she’s all on her own, Leila decides to attend a costume party wearing a burkini, a mix between a burka and a bikini that represents the clash in culture with which she struggles.
While at the party, she decides to have a one-night stand with cross-dressing Maximillian—a decision that culminates in a pregnancy. She decides she wants to have the baby, and Max chooses to support her. Still, the out-of-wedlock act is but one more thing on a long list of reasons for Shireen to criticize Leila. As far as they’re both concerned, the relationship is over.
That is, until Leila learns a bit more about a scandal concerning her mother—the truth of why the family moved to America in the first place.
Many family members encourage Leila and Shireen to repair their broken relationship. Throughout the film, we see how culture can cause us to break familial bonds, but we do ultimately see reconciliation.
And instead of making one person the “bad guy,” the film helps us to understand the perspectives of everyone we might begin to think is a bit villainous. And as we hear more and more about Shireen’s story in particular, her character becomes more and more sympathetic.
Leila’s grandma advises her to not get so deep into her work that she forgets to enjoy life. We also briefly hear about the positive value a strong male role model can have on a boy.
Leila laments lessons she learned in both America and Iran. “In America, I learned how to put my faith in science. In Iran, I learned how to put my faith in politics.” But ultimately, Leila chooses to put her faith in art and individualism. “The only way to survive was to not put my faith in any of the rules.”
Shireen, when she is distressed, calls upon the mythological Imam Zaman, a magical man whom she prays will help her through her situations. Both times she does so, her situations are almost instantly resolved, making her believe in the effectiveness of the prayer even more. Elsewhere, we see someone holding a Quran.
While Leila’s father, Ali Reza, recuperates in the hospital from a heart transplant, he expresses his hope that God will be generous to them despite the hospital bills. He refuses to sell a building for a higher price than he bought it, referencing the importance of acting honorably before God no matter where the family lives.
At a costume party, a man dresses as a priest.
Leila goes to a costume party dressed in a burkini, where she wears a burka over a bikini, the latter of which reveals her rear. She has offscreen sex with Maximillian, a cross-dressing man who is dressed as a transgender character from a play. We frequently see him dressed as the character. The two passionately kiss. When she wakes up, Leila grabs for her bikini, though we don’t see anything. Later, Leila discovers that she is pregnant with Max’s child after she goes to the doctor to find out whether or not she has breast cancer. We see a diagram of a breast, and the doctor mentions that Leila’s missed two periods.
Leila identifies as a lesbian for a time. She was married to another woman, causing strife with the rest of her family. “I think if [grandpa] saw you today, he would be ashamed of you,” Shireen says. The two women broke up, however, causing Leila to say that the best thing about gay marriage is “gay divorce.”
Leila’s grandma tells her that if she’s going to have sex, to have anal sex so she stays a virgin, explaining that that’s what she and grandpa had done. And when she hears that Leila is pregnant, she brings up the advice again.
We hear a song that includes some sexual euphemisms. Shireen accuses one son, who is a cheerleader, of only doing it so he can look up the girls’ skirts. We hear a reference to a harem. A girl is married at 13 years old. A husband is found cheating on his wife.
When the rest of the family finds out about Leila’s pregnancy, one of her brothers says, “You’re pregnant by a gay guy?”
“He’s not gay, he’s European!” Leila says.
“Only on special occasions,” Max jokes.
A couple characters give birth, and we see quite a bit of blood on the ground before and after. On one instance, we’re told that the baby did not survive the birth, and we see the corpse of the child behind held by the mother.
After learning that a man has had an affair, the woman’s family shows up to shoot him before being persuaded not to. A girl contemplates suicide. We see news footage of the Challenger explosion. Someone falls and breaks her neck.
The f-word is used 12 times, and the s-word is used eight times. We also hear profanity such as “a–,” “b–ch,” “d–n” and “h—” used sparingly. God’s name is used in vain 14 times, including one pairing with “d–n.” Someone displays her middle finger. Someone is called a “slut.”
We hear a reference to someone being in a “crackhouse.” A woman takes prescription pain medication. There’s a reference to the prescription drug Adderall. A couple characters smoke cigarettes. People drink alcohol.
A woman’s baby is taken from her. Leila vomits. Leila is depicted as quite selfish, and other characters call her out for her narcissistic behavior. Shireen’s boss makes a couple of racist comments against immigrants.
I’m a sucker for family films.
Now, you may think: “Well, you’re obligated to say that since you work at Plugged In. If you weren’t a sucker for family films, they’d probably fire you or something.”
Fortunately, I don’t have to test the veracity of that claim. But I really do love films that concern familial reconciliation and complex relationships. I’ll acknowledge that many of them can be quite cheesy, but they’re feel-good flicks that warm my heart, so I don’t mind.
For all intents and purposes, The Persian Version is one such film. And it likewise has its moments that pull on the heartstrings. But it’s also a movie that is much more crude than many others in this genre.
We hear many sexual references. Our main character is bisexual. Language is harsh. And spiritual elements are present, too.
All of which make us long for the cleaner version of The Persian Version.
Kennedy Unthank studied journalism at the University of Missouri. He knew he wanted to write for a living when he won a contest for “best fantasy story” while in the 4th grade. What he didn’t know at the time, however, was that he was the only person to submit a story. Regardless, the seed was planted. Kennedy collects and plays board games in his free time, and he loves to talk about biblical apologetics. He thinks the ending of Lost “wasn’t that bad.”
