Women Without Men

Tehran in 1953: The democratically elected government of Iranian Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh comes under massive pressure from the Americans and British after deciding to nationalize the country's oil industry. While the CIA and SIS support the Shah and instigate a military coup, Munis works to strengthen the country's democratic forces. But her religiously orthodox brother Amir forbids her from engaging in any political activity and instead wants to force her into marriage. Munis' best friend, the naive Faezeh, doesn't initially understand why Munis is so distressed by the prospect of marriage. She herself could certainly imagine marrying Munis' brother Amir. At the same time, the anorexic prostitute Zarin flees the brothel when she develops an obsession and begins to see only disfigured gapes instead of the faces of her clients. And finally, there is Fakhri, the wife of a high-ranking military officer, who is weary of the humiliations in her marriage and tries to emancipate herself and reconnect with her artistic ambitions. Fakhri buys a house with an enchanted garden just outside the city gates. The garden, which begins to flourish under Fakhri's care, becomes a refuge for the other women, who seek shelter there one after another. But it soon becomes clear that, along with the political and social setbacks, the mysterious garden too loses its bloom, and the women's dreams of freedom are shattered.