The Stoning of Soraya M

Excellent movie. If you enjoyed it, you'd also enjoy the Muslim-produced DVD called "The Third Jihad," also available from Amazon and also five stars. Here's a review of that video: 8 of 8 people found the following review helpful 5.0 out of 5 stars The Myth of "Moderate" Islam, May 25, 2011 Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?) This review is from: The Third Jihad: Radical Islam's Vision for America (DVD) This is an outstanding DVD, made by a Muslim, and packed with hard evidence: videos of Islamic leaders proclaiming their goal of destroying Western culture, not through imminent terrorism, but rather through deception and infiltration--a long-term goal to conquer the entire world and make all countries Islamic theocratic states subject to the law of Sharia. The DVD exposes how purportedly "moderate" Islamic leaders in the United States and elsewhere are anything but. Many are caught on tape advocating terrorism and the ultimate goal of global Islamic rule. Many of the main purportedly "moderate" Islamic leaders in the United States have been convicted on terrorism charges. The extreme repressiveness of Saudi Arabia, America's purported ally, is exposed, as is their massive exportation of extremist Wahhabist teachings through establishment of so-called "madrassahs" throughout the mideast, Asia and yes, the United States and Europe. The Wahhabist sect is one of the most extreme and violent of Islamic sects. The madrassahs established by the Saudis teach intolerance, hatred of the west and violent terrorist tactics to children throughout the world, starting from very early ages. They have created the Islamic extremists, terrorists, and suicide bombers of today, and tomorrow. Despite all phony denials--as expressly admitted in this DVD by many of the major Islamic leaders in the U.S.--the ultimate goal of Islam is total global conquest. The current violent terrorist acts and wars are merely feints designed--quite successfully--to keep attention away from the real jihadist movement, which is to infiltrate and destroy western democracies from within. For various reasons--extending from oil profits for corporations to "political correctness"--the United States and most of Europe (the Netherlands being an exception)--have propagated the myth that Islamic extremists are simply a tiny fringe group representing no more than 1-2% of Muslims worldwide. Nothing could be farther from the truth. On the morning of 9/11, news programs showed film of massive crowds pouring into the streets of Palestine, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen and elsewhere in joyous, ecstatic celebration of the horrible attacks on America and the deaths of so many thousand innocent citizens. Since that time, these videos have been surppressed, because they don't fit with the government's false assurances that the "real" Islam is a peaceful religion and that the terrorists represent only a tiny minority who have allegedly "hijacked" Islam. Polls in many Islamic countries have established that more than half of all Muslims either "supported," "sympathized with" or "admired" Osama Bin Laden. The majority of Islamic sects are not peaceful, or tolerant, or respectful of basic human rights. Among the worst are the Wahhabists who dominate Saudi Arabia and whose goals of terrorism and global conquest have been exported by Saudi Arabia around the world. American authorities stand idly by while these enemies of America send imams into U.S. prisons to brainwash and recruit many African-Americans and others to adopt their teachings of hate. This must stop. Wahhabist principles--including the goal of Islamic global conquest and the morality of killing all non-Muslims--are also taught throughout the United Stated in mosques, Islamic centers and through Islamic groups and websites, many of whom purport to be "moderate" and on the surface lie and disavow such things. I am a far-left Democrat. I voted for Obama, walked precincts for George McGovern, and have never voted for a Republican in my life. This is NOT a partisan issue. This is the most serious threat we have faced since Adolf Hitler and the Japanese in World War II. There is no possibility of avoiding a Third World War of the West versus Islam. The Muslims have made that inevitable. America and Europe need to wake up and stop pretending that Islam is just a peaceful religion with no goal of global conquest. If we keep our heads in the sand much longer, it will be too late. Watch this Muslim-produced DVD. You will be absolutely shocked at what your government has NOT been telling you, and the absolute lies that it has been telling you.

Note: Film presented in Persian with intermittent English. Contains English and Spanish subtitles. Not since `The Passion of the Christ' has an audience been assaulted by such a vivid, realistic vision of ignorance, hatred and unbridled brutality. Produced by the same producer as the aforementioned film, `The Stoning of Soraya M' returns the audience to a Middle East setting, a contemporary one this time (1986 Iran) to share and expose to the world a true tale of female oppression, archaic traditions and misplaced justice. This is definitely not a movie geared towards escapist family entertainment, but a serious, sobering social commentary produced to call our attention to a human rights violation that continues to occur in some parts of the world to this present day. Viewing a modern day stoning of an innocent woman would be difficult enough to endure if this was fictitious story, but knowing it's a re-enactment of an actual event is absolutely devastating. Knowing the subject matter of the film beforehand one obviously must approach it with a goal far more meaningful than a reprise from reality or the pursuit of entertainment. This is reality in its most stark, unvarnished manifestation and much like `The Passion of the Christ' the violence is captured in such a visceral, intense manner you will find it difficult if not impossible to keep your eyes focused on the screen. In other words your reason for viewing this film is to learn something and to elicit a personal response to a human rights issue that needs to be aggressively addressed. If those two goals are attained then the film has succeeded and the message received. Having said all that I don't mean to discount cinematic or artistic merits of this film, it's just that the message is so important that everything else simply pales in comparison. This is a quality film in every way; beautiful camera work, exotic soundtrack and brilliant acting. `The Stoning of Soraya M' is understandably something you won't want to watch over and over again but it demands at least one viewing from any thinking adult willing to put aside the simple pleasures of mindless entertainment for at least one evening to experience an immensely important film with a message that the world needs to hear.

I watched this movie a couple of weeks ago and cannot get it out of my mind. The movie is not particularly entertaining, but it is well worth the watch if you want to know what kinds of things go on in the world. This was the part of the Bible that always stopped me cold and left me questioning a belief system that was part of my upbringing. What a horrific way to die! To think of this practice as something in the past that we have learned from and evolved beyond is, at least somewhat, tolerable. To find that this is still practiced yet today in some places as a means of social control is completely reprehensible. I am not anymore against one religion than another. As I said earlier, the old testament of the Bible also speaks of God commanding that people be stoned to death. Therefore, to turn this into finger pointing at any particular religion misses the point. I have questioned why Soraya did not rob them of their power and control simply by suiciding since she knew she was going to die anyway. In this country, as I am sure is true in many other countries and cultures, suicide is considered illegal and immoral. However, if you are successful, then there really isn't a whole lot society can do about it. The answer, of course, is her belief system and conditioning. If you are conditioned to believe that there is an afterlife and that your soul will suffer throughout eternity for such things, then you are willing to allow such extreme pain and suffering to the body. In my opinion, Soraya is a martyr and a true heroine. Because of her willingness to die in such a way, her story has now been exposed to the world. Awareness must happen before change can take place. Be aware that this movie gets quite graphic as it tries to be realistic. It is, however, well worth the watch if you have any inclination to learn more about the harsh realities that exist in our world.

Around a year ago, I wrote a review about a film that dissapointed me greatly called An American Crime starring Ellen Page. It tried to tackle the true story of Sylvia Likens, a teenage girl that was abused to death by a grotesque pack mentality of adults and kids back in 1965 Indianapolis. I accused the film and the director of lacking the guts to dispaly the abuse realistically, and subsequently, taking what was very serious subject matter, and depicting it with all the limpness of boiled bacon. My review was objective to a fault, and examined the shortcomings of that picture with stark informative detail, while utilizing my own brand of brash humor. The name of that review was called "Pussyfoot" which pretty much summed up An American Crime's production team. For many readers, this boldness on my part didn't go over very well. In the months that fallowed, the comment box filled up with all kinds of hateful negative feedback. People where telling me what a sick man I was, how they hoped I never had children, and how I needed to have my head examined. It is truly a surreal feeling to have other people point fingers at you, while acting like they are morally superior then you are. All this because I said that that particular movie compromised its intentions by trying to skirt the issue. The point to this is, is that I wasn't wrong. I just didn't clearly state the full point that I was trying to make. Thankfully, The Stoning Of Soraya M. has come along and completed the puzzle for me. There are some stories that when objectified onto film, demand a director with the innovation and guts to boldly display harsh reality and truth without any fear of how it might effect the viewer. This impasse comes about when the subject matter is no longer about entertainment. That is the key point here. That is the difference between The Stoning Of Soraya M. and most other movies. That is why this movie works so well and is in my eyes, one of the absolute best two or three film of its entire decade. It is also why An American Crime will be no more then a forgotten footnote in the annals of movie history. The subject matter in The Stoning Of Soraya M. goes well beyond 99.9% of what all other film is for, entertainment. It therefor has to be depicted like what it is...Real. Now a couple of brief disclaimers. I can only imagine how upsetting this film must be for Islamic people. Having a nasty secret like a culture who's most ardent believers still practice and condone stoning in these modern times goes far beyond merely having a pink elephant in the room. The point of this film is not to blindly condemn Islam, but to condemn any and all sick atrocities that dare to insult humanity is such a blantantly foul way. However, it is my humble opinion that more Islamic people need to get in the game and shout down their extremists and put pressure on them to change their ways. As a westerner, just don't go into this picture through the eyes of Islamophobia. Instead, we should all be thankful that this feature exists with the harsh bare truth that it does, because it is making a demand for change with unflinching guts. It is fighting for what is right, and depicting it the right way. The only way that it possibly can. My second disclaimer is this. Know that I am a full blown ceniphile with over 1,000 DVD's in my private collection. I am also a seasoned fan of horror and exploitation films. I see violence displayed in film all the time. I have seen all sorts of people die on film in all sorts of amazing and bizarre ways, but not even a life time of digesting the most disturbing cinematic moments known to man kind prepaired me for the death scene in The Stoning Of Soraya M. I suspected this was going to rough going in, that was why I didn't bother to even take the plastic off the the DVD until five days after it arrived on my doorstep. The very idea of a person getting stoned to death on screen was a bigger pill then my mind was willing to swallow. I didn't even want to imagine how rough this was going to be. The truth is, that the depiction of the horrifying event in The Stoning Of Soraya M. not only exceeded the most dreadful images I could ever of conjured in my minds eye, but it was ten times worse then anything I would have dared to imagine. What I didn't take into account going in, was the level of acting by Mozhan Marno' who played Soraya M. What she was capable of conveying with just one look from a single facial expression, shatters nearly all the acting that I have ever seen come out of Hollywood. I still get chills down my spine just picturing her in that scene. On top of this, the directing during that sequence was done with such brilliance, care, and boldness, that this is easily the most devistating death scene ever crafted in the history of cinema. I say this without the least bit of exaggeration. This subject matter that was beyond mere entertainment demanded a director with the guts to depict its harshest moments with truth, and by God this story found one in Cyrus Nowrasteh. I won't ruin this by telling you what takes place, but just be warned...It doesn't get any realer then this. The story itself is very simple and is told in a most concise direct manner. Despite the film being mostly subtitled, you shouldn't have any problems fallowing along since things are so smooth and streamlined. What makes this such a rich rewarding cinematic experience is that the film shows so many levels of human behavior with such stark clairity. Since the poor people in this tiny Iranian village have to scrape their existence off of rock and rubble, they act in all kinds of different ways when opportunity presents itself to them. Some do petty things, like trying to steal the feminine belongings from a grieving man who just lost his wife, while others show remarkable dignity and courage in the face of the hardships and personal mistakes. I would be hard pressed to conjure up another film that showed this level of clearly drawn humanity. Mike Leigh's Naked comes to mind, as does The Magdalene Sisters, and film classics like Cool Hand Luke, and Dog Day Afternoon, but it indeed rare these days. When I look back into the experience that is this feature, I really can not see where any of the flaws are. There is not a single moment that drags or feels unnecessary. Every character is authentic and three dimentional, the dialogue meaninful and profound, and the cinematography glorious. I don't know what else to say except that I have to thank everyone involved in this film for not being afraid of the subject matter. Thanks to them, I now know for sure that I am not the jadded monster that my commenter's on my Pussyfoot review where saying I was. Thanks to the production team who made The Stoning Of Soraya M. I now know that I am completely human. This film is absolutely wonderful and essential. I give it my highest recommendation possible.

Like many an excellent film, this one is difficult to watch, but well worth it. It is a fine film that should be supported, and circulated, and admired. It derives it's power from its clear and shocking narrative and from the outstanding performances of its cast, and its unsparing attention to the suffering of Soraya M. who is stoned to death in her village in Iran. The fact that people are being stoned today in a number of countries is as horrifying as it is true. What can we do to stop this barbaric practice? What can we do to support the women in these countries who cannot defend themselves against laws that denigrate their value and impose upon them unfair standards for their defense in criminal proceedings? --- This is a brave film for focusing on one such case, and the egregious cruelty heaped on the victim. And it leaves the viewer wondering what a stoning means for all the people of a village who participate in it, including children who gather the stones. Whatever one thinks about these basic questions, one can be assured that this is first and foremost a good movie, with high productions standards --- worth seeing, worth owning, worth passing on to others. Highly recommended.

The Stoning of Soraya M is technically brilliant movie based on a true story of a unspeakably brutal sharia killing perpetrated by a man who wanted to be rid of his wife aided and abetted by a corrupt Imam. It was very painful to view and i would not recommend it for children . A sharia honor killing is a great and tragic evil even if one imagined that it was based on an actual case of adultery however in this case it was a lie. It is a story which needed to be told, and I do think there is value in people seeing the brutal reality of this aspect of sharia law, although I also am concerned that seeing this story could contribute to a wider islamophobia if you are not aware that sharia law is not practiced or advocated by the majority of Muslims. I think the creators of this film worked hard to avoid feeding into wider negative stereotypes, but depending on the education and background of the viewer it could still be a source of some misapprehension.

his is a bad movie to watch late at night, as it will haunt you. It is the story of a young wife in a small village in Iran, as told through the voice of a journalist who was passing through the village. Apparently, it was based on a true story, as this story mirrors what happens many times throughout strict Muslim countries. Soraya is mother of two young boys and two young girls, but whose husband has found her to be less than satisfactory, in spite of her hard work and virtue. He decides to get rid of her and marry another girl in a neighbor village. She takes up the job of helping to care for the children of a neighbor widower, encouraged by the town officials and holy man. Through this, the town officials and holy man assist in devising a false trumped charge of adultery. The widower is threatened with his life if he fails to assist in this plot, and so contributes to the deception of the charge of adultery, attesting that she was found lying on his bed. The final verdict was the death penalty, and all men in the village, including Soraya's sons throw stones. Justice is finally served when Soraya's husband discovers that the other girl is not available to him and he is left without a wife, and that the journalist brings the story to the rest of the world. The intention of this movie is to alert the western world as to the mistreatment of women in Muslim countries. The film inadvertently portrays a much deeper evil that lurks throughout the Muslim mindset, which unfortunately is turned into a virtue by the Muslim faith. In the Judeo-Christian ethic, a person that leads to the death of another in a trial by bearing false witness is also condemned to death (Deut. 19:15-20). Integrity and truth are considered integral to religion and worship of God. In the Muslim faith, the worship of Allah is divorced from the ethical environment. A hierarchy of values are generated whereby one evil may justify the performance of another evil.Thus, suicidal terrorist acts, the organized mistreatment of women, the debauchery that occurs in all Muslim countries are all condoned since the ends justify the means. My experience of having spent time in several Muslim countries (Bangladesh and Northern Africa) confirm this through observations of women essentially having the same social status as animals. This is not superficially observable as many Muslim men treated their wives with respect, even though they still remain second class citizens in the society. Attempts have been made to accuse Western society for demeaning women, yet, the difference is such that females are considered equal but different, contrary to feminist ideology that considers females not only equal but not different. Either is a far cry from the Muslim world, where a female might be imprisoned for driving a car, or speaking out in public. The director of this movie did a brilliant job of character development, scene portrayal, and plot flow. It will hold you by the seat of your pants, in spite of the fact that I have just given away the plot of the movie. I highly encourage you to watch this film at your first chance.

I watched this in the movie theaters back in 2010 when I was first released and it was very powerful. Shohreh is great in this movie, and I am surprised that it’s not in all the streaming libraries. This Blu-ray is the only copy I could find of it.