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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

Under the Skin of the City

EMAILPRINTMagnolia Pictures

Under the Skin of the City reviews
77
9.0 User Score:

Generally favorable reviews

Based on 13 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 3 votes
Read user comments
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Movie Info

Genre(s): Foreign

Written by: Rakhshan Bani Etemad
Farid Mostafavi

Directed by: Rakhshan Bani Etemad

Release Date:
Theatrical: March 14, 2003
DVD: March 16, 2004

Running Time: 92 minutes, Color

Origin: Iran

Language(s): Farsi (with English subtitles)

Summary

RATING: Not Rated

Starring Golab Adineh, Mohammad Reza Forutan, Baran Kosari, Ebrahin Sheibani, Mohsen Ghazi Moradi, and Homeira Riazi

An Iranian woman takes dramatic measures to save her home and family.

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

90

Los Angeles Times Kevin Thomas

This splendid film is no mere polemic, for Rakhshan Bani-Etemad, often called the first lady of Iranian cinema, is above all an accomplished storyteller and dramatist who understands the evocative power of sound and image.

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88

Boston Globe Wesley Morris

More a bleak docu-melodrama than an esoteric morality play.

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83

Portland Oregonian Kim Morgan

With understated skill and absolute authenticity, the film builds with enough layers that by its powerful ending, you'll feel as if you have been kicked in the stomach.

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80

Village Voice Michael Atkinson

Bani-Etemad's generational melodrama observes a blue-collar dynastic collapse worthy of Lillian Hellman, but stays steadfastly fixed on the quotidian of Tehran life.

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80

The New York Times Dana Stevens

The real protagonist is the family itself -- a fragile, complex organism undermined by internal conflict and menaced by the cruelty and indifference of the society around them.

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80

LA Weekly Ella Taylor

Under the Skin is distinguished, like so much contemporary Iranian cinema, by the way its striking visuals and strategic use of sound tell the underlying story.

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80

Salon.com Andrew O'Hehir

Solidly made and sometimes quite moving chronicle of a working-class family in Tehran.

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75

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

This gritty drama doesn't rank with the greatest Iranian films, but its urban characters offer an interesting change from the nation's best-known productions, which generally center on rural subjects.

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75

New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman

Watching Tuba's proud girls disappear into anonymous clouds of chadors says more than any political diatribe could, and Bani-Etemad is wise enough to know it.

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75

New York Post V.A. Musetto

The plot has all the ingredients of a soap opera, but Bani-Etemad, who has been making movies since the '80s, is able to make it much more.

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70

The Onion (A.V. Club) Keith Phipps

At times, Bani Etemad succeeds only too well at capturing the confusing rush of Adineh's family life--the film presents more subplots than it can follow thoroughly, until its final act snaps all that's come before into sharp focus.

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70

TV Guide Ken Fox

While far from her best work, this accessible, emotionally involving domestic drama nevertheless serves as a welcome introduction.

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60

Film Threat Tim Merrill

Fast-paced, at times even a bit frantic, Under the Skin of the City is above all a mother-and-son story.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this movie is 9.0 (out of 10) based on 3 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

ALI REZA G. gave it a 10:
It's great. don't miss it.

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