Paper Dream

The film's dramatic and social-media-driven concept is not bad, and it could have been developed and written much better. Unfortunately, the ending becomes predictable from the very beginning.

The lead actor playing Khaled does not deliver a strong performance, and his crying scenes in particular reduce the film to the level of a cinema student project.

Mina Vahid's performance stands out as good - and that's all.

Overall, the film has little value and does not leave a lasting impression on Iranian viewers because it is clichéd and unrealistic. However, it may works well for participation in international festivals and for winning awards, because it matches what European and American judges expect to see. Iranians are portrayed as addicted, poor and starving, or deceitful; politicians are insulted; and abandoned, run-down buildings are used as the main locations. These are exactly the images foreign judges already have of Iran and expect to see - a false picture created by Western media propaganda.

2 scores - for the concept and for Ms. Vahid's performance.