GhostOfTomJoad reviews Iranian film-maker, Jafar Panahi’s, Dayereh.

Now, ‘circle’ may be a literal translation of the word in Persian but, to my mind, and in the context it is normally used in, dayereh should mean limits or boundaries…even confinement, of sorts. And, in the context of the film, I think, all of these meanings, including ‘circle’, work. Anyway, the film doesn’t have a regular story or protagonist/s but it traces small parts of the lives of a few women, with each story being interconnected in some way, directly or otherwise. Each of these ladies, each, has either been to jail, has just been let out or will be heading there very soon. None of them, however, is a criminal and their misdemeanours are often nothing more than travelling alone, without a male companion and/or without their requisite IDs. Funnily, through the film, almost all of these ladies want to smoke but are mindful of the consequences of lighting up in public. Or, are reminded of the consequences by people around them.