So I saw Rosewater and I’m pretty sure knowing the actual story behind it spoiled me pretty severely. The movie is about an Iranian reporter, Maziar Bahari (Gael García Bernal), who returns to his country to cover the election in 2009. While there he appears on a Daily Show segment (the movie is directed by Daily Show host John Stewart) which is taken seriously by the Iranian government and he is arrested, thrown in jail, and tortured for 118 days. I’d say I spoiled myself because when you know how long someone is going to be in prison it takes a lot of the suspense out of the narrative, like things look rough at day 100 but if you know that he’s only going to be in prison for a week or two more you know things won’t get TOO bad, if that makes sense.
Since I was spoiled and thus wasn't there for a big twist or reveal, the important parts became the performances and how the people of Iran are portrayed by the film. I think this movie does a more nuanced job of this than other movies about Iran I've seen. Unlike the bloodthirsty storm troopers of Argo, the representatives of the Iranian government here are more like harried civil servants who have ambitions and goals beyond just the oppression of our heroes. The other performances, especially Shohreh Aghdashloo as Mazair’s mother (who has my favorite voice in show business), are compelling as well, creating a picture of life within the country.
There are some interesting visual effects as the movie goes on, sort of abstract versions of people organizing protests on Twitter, or Maziar’s story spreading around the world. The movie goes at a pretty good clip, and while there are some humorous moments, Stewart is definitely taking his subject matter seriously. While not a perfect movie, I think it does what it sets out to do, effectively bringing this story to the screen.
