Rating: 
Summary: a bit overstated
Review: "Leila" reminds me "Kadosh" but unlike the latter, which is full of intentional inaccuracies and outright lies, it is a more sober attempt to look at the predicament of a barren woman in a traditional society. However, if we look at it from this perspective, the film is not effective: there are only one or two characters in this film who are pressing for the supposedly "traditional" line, while everybody else does not consider a woman's inability to conceive as anything disastrous. I think that this film is not so much about conflicts with tradition as it is about how people are so often unable to take control of their own lives, about how their little weaknesses lead to situations where things they clearly don't want to happen still happen. This is the real problem, and, to my mind, it could have been treated more seriously here. For example, I found it a bit unrealistic that there was not a single conversation on the topic between the main hero and his mother. Also, I did not understand why if everybody was against the proposed deal, nobody even tried to speak up. Finally, and this is most important, we do not see any "struggle" or any "development" on the part of Laila, we hear some sentimentally-voiced narrative but nothing else. The question may even be whether she ever loved her husband.. However, despite these drawbacks, I watched the film with interest and I liked very much the parts of it depicting family reunions, with plenty of food and music, warmness and mutual affection.
Rating: 
Summary: 4-Star Movie - 1-Star DVD
Review: -This is an excellent film. The human drama is searing, and the nice comic touches go a long way to relieving the unrelenting emotional pressure. I was mesmerized by the performances, expecially Reza's mother. What a conniving shrew! Everyone is perfect. The direction is fluid and controlled, nuanced when it needs to be, hammer-like when the story calls for it. Yet, this DVD contains, without a doubt, the WORST film print I have ever seen. Scratched, marred, muffled audio,.... The contrast ratio is appalling: all the blacks are crunched: there is no fine detail in the dark areas. And the whites are practically blooming: way too hot. The filmmaker obviously used his camera as an artistic tool, and one gets the impression that over half the story - the glimpses into modern Iranian culture - are lost to us simply because the DVD studio got cheap and released a trashy print. Ever hear of the ORIGINAL NEGATIVE, guys? Hello! McFly!!! Anyway, here's hoping someone will do the right thing and release a good print of this fascinating work. The more Iranian cinema I watch, the more convinced I am that we are really all alike in the sense that most Iranians are just good people trying to live their lives in modern society, not the extremem fanatics we are constantly being shown on the news. This movie made me want to go to Iran and befriend these families. They seems like such interesting people. -
Rating:
Summary: 4-Star Movie - 1-Star DVD
Review: - This is an excellent film. The human drama is searing, and the nice comic touches go a long way to relieving the unrelenting emotional pressure. I was mesmerized by the performances, expecially Reza's mother. What a conniving shrew! Everyone is perfect. The direction is fluid and controlled, nuanced when it needs to be, hammer-like when the story calls for it. Yet, this DVD contains, without a doubt, the WORST film print I have ever seen. Scratched, marred, muffled audio,.... The contrast ratio is appalling: all the blacks are crunched: there is no fine detail in the dark areas. And the whites are practically blooming: way too hot. The filmmaker obviously used his camera as an artistic tool, and one gets the impression that over half the story - the glimpses into modern Iranian culture - are lost to us simply because the DVD studio got cheap and released a trashy print. Ever hear of the ORIGINAL NEGATIVE, guys? Hello! McFly!!! Anyway, here's hoping someone will do the right thing and release a good print of this fascinating work. The more Iranian cinema I watch, the more convinced I am that we are really all alike in the sense that most Iranians are just good people trying to live their lives in modern society, not the extremem fanatics we are constantly being shown on the news. This movie made me want to go to Iran and befriend these families. They seems like such interesting people. -
Rating:
Summary: What can I say?
Review: Despite of all the excitement on this page (and probably because of it), I found the film quite disappointing.
The idea of the film is brilliant and very topical and even bold considering the customs in the Middle East. But still it leaves some doubt in my heart whether it was exposed well enough. And though the acting by some actors was very good, through the whole film I felt that I was sitting in the indifferent audience: I wasn't feeling for the characters very much, wasn't participating, I wasn't on stage...
And, finally, the picture quality is not very good.
Rating: 
Summary: Leila is one of the best Mehrjooyi's Film.
Review: How can we be as Leila????
possible?
Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful Movie!!
Review: I don't know why we don't see more movies from the middle east.This movie is about a woman who can not conceive a child and goes through anything possible to do so. However, this is not just about her bearing a child, this is also about the overwhelming pressures of family, and how children especially having a son is very important in Iranian culture. Both the woman and her husband are constantly pressured by both sides of the family for them to conceive. The husband makes it plain that he loves her (his wife) and doesn't wish for children, but with the pressures from his mother and her own- she decides to try to convince him to take another wife. The emotional roller coaster both couples go through is very dramatic and real. And when the realization hits what was done has truly damaged their relationship- it is apparent that both miserable. However the ending does not leave for despair it gives you a sense of hope. This movie truly has a lot of morals. 1)If you can not conceive they are other ways to try 2) Do not allow family into your marriage or it can ruin it it 3) Make sure when making a decision you can live with what you just made. You will find this movie very sensitive and understanding. I was yelling at the television- hoping that right choices would be made. This is a beautiful culture that shows compassion and care. You will enjoy this movie. The DVD has chapter selections and not really any bonus material. This is a very long movie so be willing to be educated. This movie is also in english subtitles which I absoultely love. So enjoy.
Rating: 
Summary: Watch this film
Review: I happened upon this movie on the sundance channel and couldn't stop watching it. A lot of people don't understand the middle eastern culture and feel that women are opressed. This film shows that a husband loves his wife even though she cannot have children. He does not want to take on a second wife and neither does Leila. But the old customs of the mother-in-law press Leila, blame Leila and enforce that she force her husband to take a 2nd wife. The Islamic religion permits a man to take on a 2nd wife, but this husband chooses not to. This is also an understanding of the middle eastern culture that not all people do take a 2nd wife because they can. It is a wonderful story of love, fear , pain, and in the end justification. It is a bit drawn out, but you get involved with Leila, and as an American woman, I could hear myself cry out "Leila, listen to your husband! Don't worry about your mother-in-law!" But in reality, the mother-in-law can make life hell for the daughter if she wanted to. It will make you appreciate your culture a whole lot more and be thankful that you don't have to go through those tribulations like Leila did.
Rating:
Summary: Watch this film
Review: I happened upon this movie on the sundance channel and couldn't stop watching it. A lot of people don't understand the middle eastern culture and feel that women are opressed. This film shows that a husband loves his wife even though she cannot have children. He does not want to take on a second wife and neither does Leila. But the old customs of the mother-in-law press Leila, blame Leila and enforce that she force her husband to take a 2nd wife. The Islamic religion permits a man to take on a 2nd wife, but this husband chooses not to. This is also an understanding of the middle eastern culture that not all people do take a 2nd wife because they can. It is a wonderful story of love, fear , pain, and in the end justification. It is a bit drawn out, but you get involved with Leila, and as an American woman, I could hear myself cry out "Leila, listen to your husband! Don't worry about your mother-in-law!" But in reality, the mother-in-law can make life hell for the daughter if she wanted to. It will make you appreciate your culture a whole lot more and be thankful that you don't have to go through those tribulations like Leila did.
Rating: 
Summary: poorest quality DVD spoils this nice Iranian movie
Review: i share the positive reviews written about this film;
however "first run features" studio managed in spoiling the beauty of the film totally...by releasing a DVD of poorest quality...you can't even see the facial features to recognize the actors...every frame is dark, cloudy and featureless.
I'm irritated by the greedy studios that want to make fast money with minimal effort possible from their side...
their pure incompetence succeeds in negating all the creative efforts in this movie...avoid this DVD.
in comparison, "the color of paradise" is a beautiful film released beautifully in DVD by columbia/tristar. 5 star
Rating:
Summary: My favorite Iranian film
Review: I'm so annoyed that this movie is not more widely known. It is not in most video stores, and has not received the acclaim of many other Iranian films. I have seen about a half dozen films from Iran, most of which I have really liked, and this is by far my favorite. Its plot is not necessarily that original. A young, recently married woman (Leila) is constantly hounded by her mother-in-law, who wants lots of grandkids real quick. It is soon discovered that Leila is unable to bear kids. For the newlyweds, this is no problem, but you can imagine the ire this provokes in the mother-in-law. Indeed, she pressures her son to take a second wife that can bear kids (a perfectly legal practice in Iran). The film follows the newlyweds as they are confronted by these enormous familial pressures. They are both extremely likable characters whose marriage seems based on genuine love and affection, and it is agonizing to watch their relationship slowly disintegrate. I really like how the characters are faced with critical choices at various junctures- they can either choose their own happiness or succumb to the wishes of this truly despicable old woman. At any point, they can tell the mother-in-law to buzz off and let them live in peace, but everybody knows how suffocating family pressures can be. At the end (and it is not a happy ending), it is difficult to decide who is to blame for everything. Our wrath is naturally focused on the mother-in-law, who instigated the whole thing, but we also feel frustration at the newlyweds for letting their truly wonderful relationship fall apart due to the whims of a selfish, uncaring wench. Great performances all around- Leila Hatami wonderfully portrays the title character.
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