The Seed of the Sacred Fig

In 2022 in Iran, a young woman named Mahsa Amini was arrested for wearing her head scarf, or hijab, too loosely for the Islamic State’s laws on women’s dress. Protests erupted when she died mysteriously in custody. We know that the widespread demonstrations rocked the country for a year before being brutally put down by the government, but all information was censored. Mohammad Rasoulof, the dissident writer and director whose previous films provoked furious accusations from the authorities, has responded with a film called The Seed of the Sacred Fig.

Iman, played by Missagh Zareh, is a mid-level state employee who gets promoted to a more lucrative position as an investigative judge. When he tells his wife about the promotion, they share a feeling of excitement because it will mean possible state housing and further advancement. But when he goes to work, he’s dismayed to find that he’s expected to sign off on death sentences without bothering to read the file. The person who preceded him in the job was fired for refusing. He must also conceal everything he does from his family and friends, and is given a gun, ostensibly for self-defense. His promotion occurred just as the protests were gaining in strength, so the fear is that the protesters could put his picture and personal information on social media if he’s found out.

Rasoulof’s brilliant idea here is to dramatize the atmosphere during the unrest by focusing on this one man’s family, a devout and basically decent man whose decision to comply profoundly affects his relationship to his wife and two daughters. Najma, his wife, played by the remarkable Soheila Golestani staunchly supports her husband and the Iranian government, and complains to her daughters when they express more liberal attitudes. The elder daughter Rezvan, played by Mahsa Rostami is a young adult going to college but living at home. Sana (Setareh Maleki) is a teenager. Both are far more interested in the culture of their friends than their conservative family, with Sana even expressing the wish to dye her hair blue. But when a college friend of Rezvan needs help after being shot at a protest, this poses a grave problem for the daughters and especially the mother. Because, as we discover, Najma may be conventional, but she also has a heart, and loves her daughters enough to hide some things from their father.

There is much more to come, and the tense situations increase. Interspersed with the personal drama, Rasoulof  shows us startling footage of the demonstrations taken by phone cameras. Iranian women were yelling “No” to theocratic oppression, and in the face of a deadly backlash. The Seed of the Sacred Fig is a symbolic title using the image of a certain species of fig tree native to Iran, Ficus Religiosa, that wraps its roots around other trees to strangle them in order to thrive, just as the religious government strangles freedom. The picture was shot in secret. Rasoulof was sentenced to a whipping, a fine, and eight years in prison. He escaped to safety in Germany. The three main actresses also fled the country. It’s hard to know how to adequately praise The Seed of the Sacred Fig. It’s beautiful on its own as a film, but it’s also a significant political statement.