Directed by Marziyeh Meshkini.
Told in three separate parts, 'The Day I Became a Woman' is an informative, elegant movie, outlining the difficulties - both religious and cultural - facing women in Iran. The first part follows a girl about to turn nine and thus (according to Islamic law) has reached the age of womanhood and can no longer play with boys. The second deals with an unhappily married woman, and the third focuses on a wealthy old woman, who goes on a shopping spree that is indicative of her life. Stark and economical, 'The Day I Became A Woman' is a supremely well-crafted affair, which although it paints a damning portrait of the situation endured by many Iranian women, doesn't patronise or romanticize its subject matter. Graceful and neatly told, Meshkini's debut is a powerful, rich treatise and one very worthy of your attentions.
