Critical Zone

Not to be confused with Earth's critical zone.

Critical Zone
Poster
Persianمنطقه بحرانی
Directed byAli Ahmadzadeh
Written byAli Ahmadzadeh[1]
Produced by
StarringAmir Pousti
CinematographyAbbas Rahimi[1]
Edited by
  • Ali Ahmadzadeh[1]
  • Ashkan Mehri[1]
Music byMilad Movahedi[1]
Production
company
Counterintuitive Film (Germany)
Release date
  • 10 August 2023 (2023-08-10) (Locarno)
Running time
99 minutes[2]
Countries
  • Iran
  • Germany
LanguagePersian[2]

Critical Zone (Persian: منطقه بحرانی, romanized: Mantagheye bohrani, German: Kritische Zone) is a 2023 drama film written and directed by Ali Ahmadzadeh. It is an Iranian and German co-production, and was shot in secret without permission from Iranian authorities.[3]

Using a cast of non-professional actors, the film follows a drug dealer navigating Tehran's underworld over the course of a night.[4]

The film won the Golden Leopard at the 76th Locarno Film Festival.[5] Ahmadzadeh was pressured by Iranian authorities to not screen his film at the festival, and was unable to attend the premiere after being prohibited from leaving Iran.[6]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Mintzer, Jordan (16 August 2023). "'Critical Zone' Review: 'Taxi Driver' Meets 'Taste of Cherry' in Provocative Iranian Road Movie". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 7 December 2023. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Mantagheye bohrani (Critical Zone)". Locarno Film Festival. Archived from the original on 13 August 2023. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Heidmann was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Critical Zone". www.luxboxfilms.com. Archived from the original on 17 January 2024. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Pardo was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference FAZ was invoked but never defined (see the help page).