During the month of Ramadan, CGV released two films with Islamic nuances that are worth watching. Two films named Inshallah a Boy and Shayda were the best films representing their country at the recently held Oscars 2024.
Inshallah a Boy is the official representative from Jordan and Shayda is the representative from Australia. These two films coincidentally had a limited release at Jakarta World Cinema Week 2023 organized by KlikFilm in Jakarta last November.
Summary of the movie Shayda (2023)
As the title suggests, this film will center the story on Shayda (Zar Amir Ebrahimi), a young mother from Iran who immigrated to Australia. In that country, Shayda finds refuge with her daughter, Mona (Selina) in an Australian women’s shelter after being abused by her husband.
She stayed two weeks before the Iranian New Year (Nowruz). At the shelter, Shayda looks forward to building a new life for herself and her daughter. But when the judge decided that her husband could see Mona once a week without supervision, things became more complicated and new problems arose later.
Shayda movie reviews
Strong story and interesting characters
Shayda has an interesting and well-written story. Noora Niasari, who serves as the director and writer of Shayda, is truly masterful in portraying this very multi-dimensional character.
This role is played very well by Zar Amir Ebrahimi and is well developed because Shayda has a very slow pace, making it possible for the audience to understand Shayda’s presentation, especially when she has a dialogue with her lawyer.
Additionally, the conflict between her and her husband seems to be the culmination of the emotions she has suppressed throughout the film. The supporting characters dominated by women are also very solid, because they also have their own problems and protect each other at home.
Technical elements strengthen the story
Using a 4:3 aspect ratio instead of 16:9 like widescreen movies generally makes the screen denser. This strengthens the story, makes it more thrilling, and keeps the audience focused on this emotional film.
Additionally, the cinematography showcases natural lighting with the camera tending to focus on Shayda’s face, allowing us as viewers to clearly see the emotions she feels.
Conclusion about the movie Shayda
Watching Shayda will make us feel the diverse emotions expressed by the director. We will feel sad, angry and amazed at the courage and strength Shayda had to overcome the problems she faced, especially when faced with a husband who acted rudely towards her. .
In addition, we will see how it is possible to establish a relationship between mother and child with a sincere and understanding heart. Shayda’s patience and gentleness in dealing with Mona, who is innocent and does not yet understand the problems her mother is facing, deserves praise.