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Poster for Persian Lessons

Persian Lessons

Seen it?

2020 | 127 min | War, Drama

Weeknight Watch

Why it’s a Weeknight Watch

With soft box office and little lasting buzz, it's a mixed bag. Fine if it's on; don't plan your night around it.

Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.

Is it for you?

Who'll love it
Made for history buffs. If you loved Schindler's List or Inglourious Basterds, start here.
The mood
Intense.
The pace
Takes its time with its characters, at 2 hr 7 min.
What might put you off
It's in German, so expect subtitles (or a dub).

Occupied France, 1942. Gilles is arrested by SS soldiers alongside other Jews and sent to a camp in Germany. He narrowly avoids sudden execution by swearing to the guards that he is not Jewish, but Persian. This lie temporarily saves him, but Gilles gets assigned a life-or-death mission: to teach Farsi to Head of Camp Koch, who dreams of opening a restaurant in Iran once the war is over. Through an ingenious trick, Gilles manages to survive by inventing words of "Farsi" every day and teaching them to Koch.

How it earned its rating

  • CriticsSolid

    80% on Rotten Tomatoes, 53 on Metacritic

  • AudiencesSolid

    7.6 out of 10

  • AwardsWeak

    0 wins and 1 nomination from smaller awards and festivals

  • Box office & staying powerBelow par

    $4 million worldwide; still draws a steady audience long after release

  • Buzz & cultural impactBelow par

    About 85K people sought it out in the past year

Trailer

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Cast & crew

Directed by Vadim Perelman

  • Nahuel Pérez BiscayartGilles
  • Lars EidingerKlaus Koch
  • Jonas NayMax
  • Leonie BeneschElsa
  • Alexander BeyerCamp Commander
  • David SchütterPaul
  • Luisa-Céline GaffronYana
  • Andreas HoferAdjutant von Dewitz
  • Giuseppe SchillaciMarco Rossi
  • Antonin ChalonJacob Rossi