Some people may associate the Islamic Republic of Iran, formerly called Persia, with its historical war with Iraq. Yet, little did people know that Iran brims with rich cultural heritage, including fascinating arts and traditions. And for the record, although the cinema of Iran has been flying under the radar for quite a while now, it has been one of the best exporters of cinema, alongside China, back in the 1990s. In terms of movie production, Persian films are on par with some of the best in Hollywood. In fact, even before the success of the South Korean film Parasite at the 2020 Oscars, a Persian movie entitled A Separation won the 2012 Oscar for Best Foreign Language film. Interestingly, although the success of A Separation can be attributed to a lot of people behind the scenes, one person was responsible for the direction, screenplay, and production--he is Asghar Farhadi. That, our friends, is the reason why A Separation secured the top spot on our list of the best Persian movies.

Just to be clear, this page may appear like a feature article for the critically-acclaimed filmmaker Asghar Farhadi but rest assured that his works, which made it to the cut, deserve the spot. It includes The Salesman (2017), which was also Farhadi's 7th feature film that bagged yet another Oscar nomination in 2017, and the drama-thriller Everybody Knows (2018). To rev up the list a little bit, we have also included A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014) and Under the Shadow by Babak Anvari. Sit back and relax as this list of the best Iranian movies is just in time for the Islamic Republic Day!