Under the Shadow

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Movie Info & Cast

Director:

Babak Anvari

Producer:

Patrick Fischer, Khaled Haddad, Nick Harbinson

Writer:

Babak Anvari

Release Date:

Oct 7, 2016

Runtime:

1hr 24m

Cast

  • Narges Rashidi
  • Avin Manshadi
  • Bobby Naderi
  • Arash Marandi
  • Aram Ghasemy
  • Soussan Farrokhnia
  • Ray Haratian
  • Hamid Djavadan
  • Behi Djanati Atai
  • Bijan Daneshmand

Letterboxd User Reviews

3.5
71.5K
26.6K
13.9K
RATINGS 48 FANS
3.5
  • Oct 31, 2016

    This poster is so ugly it almost convinced me of not watching the film

    586 Likes
    Leticia Fernandes
    Leticia Fernandes
    Jan 8, 2017

    Best horror films of 2016? Ever since I was a kid I've been fascinated by haunted houses and ghosts. So it was only natural that when my love for the horror genre was sparked by films like Nightmare on Elm Street in the 80s, I always sought out films that had to do with…

    291 Likes
    DirkH
    DirkH
    Aug 28, 2025

    I’ve never been so scared of wind this much in my entire life 😭 Atmospheric horror my beloved

    178 Likes
    Anna🍓
    Anna🍓
  •
    Jan 12, 2023

    of course if you see a portal on the ceiling of your living room you will cover it with masking tape, brilliant

    171 Likes
    petestavsf
    petestavsf
    Jun 10, 2016

    Shideh, her head shrouded within her hijab, desperately pleads with an administrator to allow her to return to university so that she can graduate and become a doctor. At the time of the revolution she was young, impressionable and passionate for change. But she sided with…

    137 Likes
    Disgustipated
    Disgustipated
    Oct 26, 2021

    eerie! if a malevolent spirit destroys my workout tapes that's fine tho

    109 Likes
    fran hoepfner
    fran hoepfner
  •
    Nov 9, 2024

    2 analyzes in English and TurkishOverrated.. English: Yes, I’m going to talk about ridiculous movies. It’s a terrible film; even though they used horror elements familiar to the Islamic culture I know, these elements were used in an extremely wrong and awful way. A boring…

    106 Likes
    Batuhan Taşçılar
    Batuhan Taşçılar
    Oct 30, 2016

    tbt to when that person dressed up as the babadook for a party but it turned out to be more of a grown ups drinking wine vibe

    101 Likes
    Marian
    Marian
    Sep 30, 2016

    51/100 Sporadically effective as horror, muddled as social commentary. In one sense, this film functions as the polar opposite of Hope and Glory (call it Despair and Misery), thus swinging the needle back from counterintuitive to bluntly obvious; as in The Babadook—another…

    97 Likes
    Mike D'Angelo
    Mike D'Angelo

Queue Community Reviews

77%
Community 7,035
❤️ LOVE
11%
👍 LIKE
66%
😐 MEH
14%
👎 DISLIKE
9%
Top Reviews
  • Arsal
    Arsal liked
    Under the Shadow

    A haunting portrayal of war, motherhood, & fear. Performances are excellent & setting unique. A bomb-ridden apartment amplifies the dread. The mix of political tension & the supernatural gives it depth. Horror with substance. Where real world terror is just as scary as the Jinn.

    10M
    Jana
    Jana liked
    Under the Shadow

    Something a little different. A couple good jump scares. I appreciated the perspective of the characters and the story they were trying to tell. It wasn’t amazing.

    2Y
    artin
    artin is "meh" on
    Under the Shadow

    5/10 some scenes were good but the story and ending sucked, the movies over all was bad acting, and personally i wouldn’t waste my time on it.

    3Y
  • Ana
    Ana disliked
    Under the Shadow

    Confused me. I didn’t like the narrative, the acting and the characters and their relationship.

    8M
    Natalia Marsola
    Natalia Marsola is "meh" on
    Under the Shadow

    It wasn’t too bad but I was waiting for something to happen the whole movie and nothing

    1Y
    natalie c
    natalie c liked
    Under the Shadow

    the ending was underwhelming but overall it was ok

    4Y
  • kayla
    kayla is "meh" on
    Under the Shadow

    5/10 underwhelming

    1Y
    Dylan
    Dylan disliked
    Under the Shadow

    Not in rnglish

    2Y
    71irriss
    71irriss liked
    Under the Shadow

    Zor ka abaya

    2Y

Atom Users Reviews

No one has posted a user review yet.

Metacritic

83
metacritic
Based on 25 Critics
7.5

USER SCORE (96)

Generally favorable reviews based on 96 Reviews
100
Oct 7, 2016

Full of shivers and subtext, this is scarily good. One of the films – horror or otherwise – of the year.

Metacritic review by Jamie Graham
Jamie Graham
Total Film
70
Oct 6, 2016

War may be terrible, but for a woman like Shideh there’s no horror like home.

Metacritic review by Manohla Dargis
Manohla Dargis
The New York Times
100
Oct 5, 2016

Under the Shadow is not only perfectly paced, the storytelling and plotting is emotionally gripping. The director also uses setting and location, composition and framing like a master of horror.

Metacritic review by Martyn Conterio
Martyn Conterio
CineVue

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Under the Shadow (2016) family-friendly?
The movie has been rated as PG-13, meaning that some material may be considered inappropriate for children under 13.
How long is Under the Shadow (2016)?
The movie is 1hr 24min long.
Who's the cast of Under the Shadow (2016)?
  • Narges Rashidi as Shideh
  • Avin Manshadi as Dorsa
  • Bobby Naderi as Iraj
  • Arash Marandi as Dr. Reza
  • Aram Ghasemy as Mrs. Ebrahimi
  • Soussan Farrokhnia as Mrs. Fakur
  • Ray Haratian as Mr. Ebrahimi
  • Hamid Djavadan as Mr. Fakur
  • Behi Djanati Atai as Pargol
  • Bijan Daneshmand as Director
Who's the director behind Under the Shadow (2016)?
Babak Anvari directed Under the Shadow (2016).
Who produced Under the Shadow (2016)?
Patrick Fischer, Khaled Haddad and Nick Harbinson produced Under the Shadow (2016).
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