This documentary is inspiring for all the right reasons and infuriating for all the typical reasons. This is a film about how one woman is trying her best to break through the patriarchal old guard of her village in Iran and all the resistance she meets because of her gender.
Sara Shahverdi is a middle aged Iranian woman who became a politician in her local community. Not just that, but she won the lion’s share of the vote so she is the head councilor. Cutting Through Rocks follows her journey to do what’s right despite fierce opposition and an enemy who hates her simply for being a woman.
Men are the worst. Old conservative men, to be exact. But as a CIS gendered man, I think I’m qualified by lived experience to say, yes, men are the worst. The amount of times other men have expected me to join them in some off color joke or agree with them on some anti-woman talking point is outrageous.
It’s so easy to stay in power when you won’t let anyone else in your small penis party. A woman wants to teach young girls? She wants to stop preteen girls from getting married to 35 year old men? Well she better stop, she’s going against tradition.
It’s so easy to sit back and judge another country as being backwards but I can say, beyond the shadow of any hint of a doubt, that everything Sara is fighting against in this film is backwards and wrong. This is also a warning. Look at what happens when we take power away from women. Look what happens when we don’t listen to women or even allow them to speak.
Normally in my reviews I try to make a joke or two but there’s nothing funny about this. Sara Shahverdi is a hero. She’s a better politician and person than most of the stuffed suits in Washington. She wants the power only to make a change and make the lives of the women of her village better. It’s clear that a lot of her support in this movie comes from the younger generation. Just like here in America, it’s time for old career politicians to step down and make way for the future.
This movie does have some hope though. Sara is that hope. But she has a big fight in front of her against generations of uneducated men fighting for tradition. This movie may have made me very angry, but I’m glad I watched it. Sara’s story needs to be told.