NR | 1h 45m | Drama | 2025
Japan has dominated Olympic judo with 96 total medals. Iran has “only” won 20 medals, and the Israeli team has so far grappled its way to nine. The two Middle East nations don’t appear to be natural rivals at international competitions.
The Iranian regime, however, has been concerned that their judokas could compete against Israelis. For Islamic extremists, merely appearing on the same tatami mat might help legitimize the Israeli state, and losing to Israel would repudiate the state’s hateful ideology.
Hence, the Iranian Judo Association has often forced their judokas, like Leila Hosseini (Arienne Mandi), to feign injuries to avoid facing off against an Israeli opponent. At an international championship, Hosseini defies the regime to stay true to herself and her sport in Guy Nattiv and Zar Amir’s “Tatami.”
Nattiv is Israeli, while Amir is an Iranian actress living in exile, probably best known for her Cannes winning performance in “Holy Spider.” Their co-directing collaboration is a historic first.
Contending
Much like Amir, the character of Hosseini harbors no ill-will towards Israelis. In fact, she and Israeli judoka Shani Lavi (Lir Katz) maintain a cordial professional friendship, even though Hosseini’s teammates clearly do not approve.
Her coach, Maryam Ghanbari (Amir) tries not to notice, opting to focus on the tournament. If Hosseini wins the championship, and she is a serious contender, Ghanbari also wins a measure of redemption. While she competed as a judoka, the regime ordered Ghanbari to retire, so as not to compete with an Israeli opponent. Since then, she has pretended her non-existent injury ended her fighting career to save face with international colleagues.
Both Hosseini and Lavi win their early rounds. In anticipation of Hosseini fighting the Israeli competitor, the regime calls Ghanbari, demanding another dubious Iranian withdrawal. Initially, the coach tries to stall, so various enforcers start threatening Ghanbari and her elderly mother back in Iran.
Serious Contender
Yet, Hosseini refuses to comply. Having already defeated the defending champion, she knows this could be her best opportunity to triumph in an international tournament. Perhaps more than anything, she knows her acquiescence will lead to the same self-loathing and resentment that torments Ghanbari.
Predictably, her defiance directly endangers her husband, Nader (Ash Goldeh), and their young son, Amir (Nima Mohammad), who are watching from Iran. Consequently, Nader hastily arranges their flight across the border. It might sound like Hosseini asks a lot of her husband, but Nattiv and Amir show viewers flashbacks that suggest Nader might already harbor even greater resentment of the Iranian government’s hypocrisy than his wife does. Unfortunately, her elderly parents aren’t so mobile or adaptable.
As Hosseini advances through her bracket, she must endure pressure from Ghanbari, her teammates, the increasingly aggressive harassment from the regime’s minders, as well as the holds and throws of her opponents. Stacey Travis (Jaime Ray Newman), an official with the International Judo Federation, observes signs of duress, but she can’t offer help until Hosseini lodges a formal request.
By exerting multiple sources of pressure on their lead, Amir and Nattiv immediately achieve a high level of tension, which increases at an exponential rate. As a result, “Tatami” is probably the best sports film of the decade thus far. It’s also a ripping good political thriller.
Pressure and Reprisals
The word harrowing is insufficient to describe Mandi’s portrayal of the embattled Iranian judoka. She viscerally shows how Hosseini is run through the wringer physically, mentally, and emotionally. Yet, somehow, she keeps fighting on.
Watching her performance is inspiring and somewhat humbling, considering it was modeled on real-life Iranian women athletes. Taekwondoin (practitioners of Taekwondo) Kimia Alizadeh defected to Bulgaria and competitive rock-wall climber Elnaz Rekabi competed without a hijab headscarf; her family reportedly suffered extensive reprisals for that.
The entire ensemble is remarkably strong, including Katz, whose brief but appealingly charismatic scenes as Lavi reinforce the arbitrary foolishness of the Iranian government’s prejudices. Co-director Amir’s portrayal might be the film’s most compelling and bitterly tragic performance. As Ghanbari, she projects a painful awareness that she is now doing to Hosseini exactly what the regime did to her.
Newman plays the determined Travis with both keen sensitivity and considerable forcefulness. Valeriu Andriuta elevates the film even further. He gives a deeply humanistic portrayal of Vlad, the tournament medic and a Cold War-era Romanian defector to Canada. His empathetic understanding of Hosseini’s dilemma makes him a confidante and conduit for communication to the Federation.
Todd Martin’s gritty black-and-white cinematography amplifies the sense of intimacy and urgency. Everything in Nattiv and Elham Erfani’s screenplay has real-life precedents. The Iranian Judo Federation faced a four-year international ban (lifted in 2023) due to its unsportsmanlike circumvention of matches against Israeli athletes.
In many ways, “Tatami” is a timely film, but it tells an acutely personal story about the fight for freedom and personal integrity. Very enthusiastically recommended.
“Tatami” opens in theaters June 13.
‘Tatami’
Director: Guy Nattiv & Zar Amir
Starring: Arienne Mandi, Zar Amir, Jaime Ray Newman, Lir Katz, Ash Goldeh
Not Rated
Running Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
Release Date: June 13, 2025
Rated: 5 stars out of 5
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