Opiniones de usuarios

I would vote an Oscar for this one if I were in the Academy. An unusual premise underpins a tension-filled two hours, culminating in a virtuoso climax that was the perfect denouement. Great performances, too.

I enjoy watching movies, have always done. But my joy of doing so has been trashed by the constant destruction of this beautiful art by the corrupt Hollywood in the last three decades, where most movies don't necessary represent the seventh art.

Vadim Perelman brings back the joy of watching movies back into my living room. After making the wonderful 'House of Sand and Fog', he's come back again with yet another beautifully done masterpiece. The directing, acting and the story telling are of the high level of it's own. He apparently (kind of) enjoys making movies about the Persians and the rich and beautiful language and culture of this ancient civilisation. Let the movie flow into your brain and heart and enjoy the heart warming and moving story between the....

After thousands of movies about Nazis and concentration camps, one could think that nothing new can be said. But again, this movie surprises with an original and captivating story of a survivor.

In my opinion, though, the story of this Persian teacher is just a bonus. The main point of the movie is that Nazis weren't some sort of alien species from a distant planet. Yes, they were monsters. But they were human beings, with their love stories and job problems. One was dreaming about opening a restaurant, while another one was complaining that fish was to be served for lunch. It just happened that meanwhile they had to hate and kill other human beings as their daily task.

Of course, this is no excuse for the terrible crimes committed by the German nation during that time. On the contrary, it is a big warning for the rest of us.

It is very comfortable to think that we are immune, but we should all realize that, under specific conditions, all human societies are capable of the worse. Some of us could become the next Nazis if we don't learn from history. So, please, let's protect and cherish our fragile democracies!

What a remarkable story! It is captivating and touching from start to finish. The final scene is very effective and moving.

Excellent storyline and acting with suspenseful moments. Very moving psychological thriller played out beautifully. A very good watch.

France 1942. To survive, a Jewish man pretends to be Persian and teaches Farsi to a Nazi officer, although he doesn't know the language at all. Based on real events, this has many of the all too familiar and brutal elements of similar WW2 survival dramas, and so while in can seem derivative at times, it does manage to be very effective gripping and poignant, and offers yet another lesson from history.

This is a very new twist in an old genre. its a psychological thriller between two uneven characters. Lars Eidinger gives a tremendous performance that is nothing short of christoph waltz in Inglorious basterds. but he gives his character more depth and transforms him from a sadist to a man who also seeks love.

If you like this, I can also recomment Der Hauptmann with Max Hubacher turning from a refugee into a mass murderer. These two films are great exercises on the psychological mechanics of faschism.

A man beats death into submission in it's own backyard. What a great spectacle of sheer strength, immense courage and Awareness in every step of the way.

'Persian Lessons' tells a tale that could be thought of as an offbeat twist on 'Schindler's List'. A Nazi resolves to save a prisoner - but just one - and for the odd reason that the man can teach him Farsi. The man is in fact lying and is making the language up as he goes from the names of dead prisoners; the Nazi seems to know he is being lied to, but is so attached to the dream of living in Iran that he allows himself to believe. Parts of the dynamic are quite interesting, particularly the way the Nazi manages moments of decency against the backdrop of the despicable behaviour he engages in the rest of the time; but overall, the story feels a little far fetched. I'm sure there are amazing true stories of people who survived the holocaust through unlikely chance and personal connections; but I'm not sure this unlikely fiction does that much to shed new light on these terrible events.

A resourceful camp prisoner decides on the spot to impersonate a Persian to avoid being executed as a Jew in wartime France. Coincidence has it that one of the officers wants to learn Farsi, as he has the plan to move to Teheran after the war. Reza, as he now calls himself, teaches Klaus a completely invented language, which has the challenge for himself to also remember what he is "teaching". As a support he uses parts of the names of the camp inmates which he registers in a book as part of his job. There are scary moments when you think the scam will come out, but also it is funny to see how this smug officer is fooled. The film is gripping all the way long and of course you are curious how this will end for both of them. The actor portraying Reza is excellent, hung between being scared and needing to be convincing.

Nonsensical story.

Acting & set is good.

The German had never previously acquired a Persian translation book or knew a single word is hard to believe.

What happens to the other Persian later in the film spoils the story.

Really 'enjoyed' the film. I found it absolutely gripping wondering how the prisoner would survive. I cannot find evidence as claimed that it was based on a true story which annoys me. It does not impact the power of the film though as eventually you get carried away. One not to be missed.

A Jewish prisoner, at the height of WWII, pretends to be Persian in order to teach the camp commandant the language he dreams of learning. His life depends on inventing, and remembering, the words to his farcical Farsi. This riveting drama is superbly acted by the two central leads, and wonderfully directed by Vadim Perelman.

The acting and directing are actually pretty well, i also loved the idea. People in desperate situation do anything to survive.

But quickly i saw the surrealism of the entire premise .

The story would have been much more credible if he had a t least something in touch with the Farsi language, but basically make up a story completely from scratch is just insane that would take linguistic masterminds years, and lots of notes to pull of( Tolkien for example for his lords of the rings, and he studied languages) the idea is interesting, but a language is more then just learning words out of head, it has rules,sentence constructions,etc. Its just becomes sillier and sillier near the end.

Too much convenient random stuff happening for the sake of plot.

Pity, wasted opportunity.

"Persian Lessons" is a must-see. As an Iranian spectator, I love all of the characters whose name is Reza.

In the first scene, the subject and the story are introduced: the book versus the food. For the same, we will have two components: one is food and cooking and the other is books and lessons.

Important elements that form the main character (Reza) are also introduced: fear and courage.

Reza's character has formed by fear, but he is not inherently timid: The fear of death which killed his groupmates.

The fear of not being exposed as an Iranian.

The fear of forgetting the words which he made and taught.

And the fear that everyone had in those days: The fear that they did not know what the outcome of the war would be.

But Reza is brave and takes risks. To survive, he must introduce himself as an Iranian. He is not afraid to go hungry, he takes risks and gets a book in exchange for a sandwich. Almost no wise person in such a situation prefers books to food!

Klaus's character is also special. He has an aim in his life, although he is a Nazi, he does not have a heart for this party. His personality is shaped by two things: cooking and the Persian language.

I would prefer to see more and more of Klaus being a chef in the film. For instance, we watched that he was cooking. With precise and penchant.

The end of the film is as splendid as the beginning of the film (book and sandwich): 2840 people come to life again when their names are told by Reza, and they will immortalize in history.

I had had many questions on what a Kyivite Vadim Perelman has been doing after he had out of a blue shot a magnificent House of Sand of Fog - until I read his column in Ukraine's Forbes. He openly shuns those movies he has done interregnum. With this movie the great director is back. Gripping narrative, masterful cutting, edgy mastercraft of both protagonists and of supporting staff. You may forgive certain inconsistencies for the sake of unrolling immersing story. Perelman's success seems to rest upon outstanding books and scripts on which his movies are based. So let us wish him next time pick up the lucky book in the airport when he flies from LAX to Kyiv Boryspil.

Interesting but bleak film, which is no surprise given its time and location

But it keeps your attention thanks to some fine acting particularly by Lars Eidinger.

Worth every minute of our time from beginning to unexpected finale.

Although this is not a true story, it is absolutely plausible ! The inventive hero cooks up a brilliant ruse in the hope of personal survival.

At the same time, he also takes risks (as many gutsy inmates did during those horrific times) to help others. Gripping story which never wavers as it keeps the audience in suspense throughout. Highly recommended. And my thanks to Vadim Perelman for his deft directorial prowess. A truly professional story teller .We should all look forward to his future offerings.

Sort of ordinary, after those extraordinary films about world war 2.

Studios can Make competent movies about World war without having a big budget and stellar cast, Persian Lessons is proof of that. You feel what the main character is going through his fears, hopes, and desperations. The movie makes you sympathize with the main character. Decent camera work and soundtrack great job by the two lead actors and well narrated and worth the time to watch.

Although the scenario is well-written the information about Iran has some very key inaccuracies: Iran was not a colony of Britain at all Iran was a political Ally with Hitler who believed they are of the same race: I presonally saw Hitler's gift to Iran's ruler in the Iranian Navy museum; it was a telegram device on which Hitler called Reza shah as his brother Iran was occupied by the allies and USSR due to its relations with NAZI Germany and to stop Germans from reaching to the oil resources in Azerbaijan With all these facts mentioned, a Persian cannot be kept in prison at all so the whole true story deviated from the dramatized one Also, there seem to be no reason of why that italian killed the Iranian-British Prisoner The whole drama and sub-plots were not having anything new comparing with other versions about the Massacre Nazi's did. The relationship of the two main characters seemed to be the pivot of the scenario which was well written. The side story and social interaction between German soldiers is a very interesting well done part of the work: that a bunch of murderers still have their own emotional and social life as normal as anyone: their feelings of guilt was justified by the NAZI ideology. This is the painful part of the human history where all these war criminals see themselves innocent in the Nuremberg Court.