Movie Review: ‘Reading Lolita In Tehran’

by | Jul 9, 2026 | Featured Post, Movie Reviews, Movies | 0 comments


Greetings again from the darkness. Other than basic decency and human connection, there are few things that define a person and their life more than education. Whether gained in a classroom or through daily experiences, understanding people and history is what provides our perspective and our foundation of humanity. A common strategy of small-minded authoritarians who seek only more power is to limit educational opportunities for others … as if holding one group down will lift up said power-monger. This is on full display in this film based on the experiences Azar Nafisi detailed in her 2003 memoir. The film is directed by Eran Riklis (LEMON TREE, 2008), who co-wrote the screenplay with Marjorie David.

Golshifteh Farahani (PATERSON, 2016, EXTRACTION, 2020) stars as Azar Nafisi, a literature professor at Tehran University, whom we first meet just after the 1979 Islamic Revolution. In very little time, we learn Azar is a passionate and dedicated teacher, while also being a fierce defender of personal rights – to teach and to learn. Director Riklis divides the film into four chapters, each using the name of a classic literature piece. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 “The Great Gatsby” is where we begin, and the professor structures a classroom courthouse, putting the novel on trial … on the heels of Ayatollah Khomeini instilling hijab laws as a way to hold women back and stifle feelings.

Part 2 jumps ahead 15 years to 1995 in the section named “Lolita” for Nabokov’s 1955 novel. At this point, most every move is a risk for Azar, and she finds herself wistfully daydreaming of the days when she could browse the many titles at Hamida’s independent bookstore, which no longer exists. Moving forward to 1988, it’s Henry Miller’s 1878 novella “Daisy Miller”, as well as the peak of the Iran-Iraq border war. In this section, Azar looks over her students and concludes, “They have nothing to remember.” It’s the most poignant line of the film and perfectly captures the importance of a cultured and open society. The final chapter takes place in 1996 and takes its title from Jane Austen’s 1813 novel, “Pride and Prejudice”. This also coincides to Azar’s final year in Iran, before she moved to the U.S. Azar is quite fortunate to have married Bijan (Arash Marandi), an engineer who was so patient and understanding.

Azar became a U.S. citizen in 2008 (as a young woman, she earned her Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma) and has carried forth as an esteemed academic professional since. Perhaps her most rewarding and risky days were the regular sessions she held at her house in Iran, inviting women to learn and discuss the literature that had been forbidden by the regime. Filmed in Italy (not Iran), Azar Nafisi’s story is one of courage and determination, and it reminds us of the societal importance of equality, free speech, and open learning. In contrast, Azar, the filmmakers, and lead actors are forbidden from returning to Iran.

Opens July 10, 2026 in New York and July 17 in Los Angeles and Nationwide

David Ferguson
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