Original poster artwork · Great Cinema Master List
Spoiler-free premise
During a seaside trip, teacher Elly disappears, forcing a group of friends to examine the lies surrounding her invitation.
Read expanded premiseLonger, still spoiler-free+
Sepideh invites her daughter's teacher Elly to join married friends at a rented villa on Iran's Caspian coast, quietly hoping to match her with recently divorced Ahmad. When Elly vanishes near the water, the group's improvised explanations expose hidden facts.
Why it belongs
Farhadi builds a pinpoint conscience-bound chain reaction from a disappearance, where hospitality, reputation, gender, and small lies tighten together.
Read expanded why it belongsThe fuller editorial case+
The ensemble makes each attempt to protect someone create a new ethical pressure for everyone else. Wind, waves, crowded rooms, offscreen uncertainty, phone calls, and overlapping argument keep information socially distributed.
Major award wins
No verified wins in this six-institution crosswalk.
Awards are reference metadata only · zero points in 40/40/20
Good for
Film Club
Descriptive guidance derived from rating, genre, runtime, mood, and GCML scores.
Institutional reference ranks
Sight & Sound—IMDb Top 250—AFI 100—
Reference metadata only · not part of the 40/40/20 score
Great Cinema Master List scores
Greatness9.0
Engagement9.1
Ease8.1
Persian · Not Rated Narrative Feature Mood: Gripping
