Not Without My Daughter

Brian Gilbert’s 1991 film is based on a 1987 memoir by Betty Mahmoody, who was persuaded by her Iranian-American physician husband “Moody” to travel to his native land in 1984, along with their young daughter Mahtob, for what he promised would be a short visit with his family. But once they were there, Moody announced that they would permanently remain, and Betty found that the dissolution of diplomatic relations with the U.S. following the 1979 hostage crisis left her no hope of help from that quarter (she also discovered from the American Interests Section of the Swiss embassy that any effort to leave would be obstructed by Iranian law). Recounting Betty’s desperate efforts to contrive an escape for her and her daughter—which finally succeeded in 1986, when they were smuggled to Turkey in a harrowing car trip—the script tries to be somewhat balanced, but ultimately takes the mother’s perspective, and while Alfred Molina brings a degree of shading to Moody, the character is inevitably portrayed in a negative light. As Betty, Sally Field is at her most histrionic, giving a performance that largely sacrifices subtlety. Shot mostly in Turkey and Israel, Not Without My Daughter looks authentic and benefits from a fine supporting cast, but dramatically the film feels—perhaps inevitably—like a fairly typical one-sided Lifetime drama about a woman wronged by a tyrannical husband. Extras include an archival behind-the-scenes” featurette. A strong optional purchase. (F. Swietek)