Hatamikia is a well known director in topics related to Iran-Iraq war. Although his personal believes could be found in his art, he could not be categorized as a propaganda movie director. Che is about Dr.Mostafa Chamran a prominent figure in in evens after the Islamic revolution of Iran.
The movie portrays a pacifist-spiritual figure of Chamran in the context of Paveh city siege by Kurdish separatist militia. He is reluctant to kill, he prefers to negotiate rather than fight. This approach is in contrast with the radical Asghar Vesali (Pasdaran Commander) or separatist leader or Dr.Enayati, separatist leader. This continues until the end and never changes, so we never see Chamran as a warrior type rebel similar to Che Guara as expected.
This high expectations comes from the title of the movie which is similar to Che Guara name. In addition we know that he was the person who formed and trained Pasdaran Corps in Iran. He had a long history as a militia fighter in Lebanon. Even in scenes he is involved in a fight the actor fails to show any sign of a seasoned warrior. His firing scene in hospital looks more like a video game rip off. Fariborz Arabnias' weak performance results in a character who is not a good leader nor a good fighter. His tone of voice is very soft and weak. It is a shame that they couldn't persuade Parviz Parastui to act this character, who would certainly illustrate a more lively Chamran.
Even the role of Chamran in Kordestan events is not portrayed well. We see a very subtle effect from his presence in the outcome of the struggle. I think this is a weakness because we expect to see "something" because of his presence in there. That is a problem in many Iranian movies and roots back to weak story writing. Story teller is only an observer of a troubled person trying to be nice and prevent massacre, however in the end he could not even save a single life. So what was the purpose of telling this story if he was not effective in this struggle? From the historical point of view it is not a historically accurate movie. The events are still hot and controversial topics in Iran. Unfortunately there is no independent historical research about Chamran's life that the movie could be based upon. As a result parts of movie are based on artistic inspirations of the director based on known facts. Hatamikia claims to have done his research on the topic and been thinking about this for 10 years. However, few people are satisfied with this movie. Kurds or even Army are portrayed as remote non important factors in the event. Hatamikia don't give any deep understanding of the situation.
The sound effects and music are great. Music is beautiful and thrilling. It is bold and original. The sound effects are comparable to any modern Hollywood production. Matched with artistic shots of the director you could enjoy a high quality cinema experience. However visual effects are not as good as they are described in Iranian media. You could easily locate cheap computer-made visual effects all over the movie. However, compared to similar Iranian war movies it is better and maybe that's why it won best visual effects prize from Fajr movie festival in Iran.
If you are looking for a historical movie about Dr.Chamran's life or the events in Kordistan you may be disappointed. You will find less than a Wikipedia page. However, it is a well made Iranian war action movie that could be enjoyed as is.
