Movie Review: ‘Tatami’ Delivers As First Rate Sports Drama And Terrifying Political Thriller

Directed by Guy Nattiv and Zar Amir, “Tatami” delivers as both a sports drama and a political thriller. Powered by awards worthy performances from Arienne Mandi and Zar Amir, “Tatami” opens June 13 at New York’s IFC Center. CinemAddicts co-host Bruce Purkey has high praise for this film, so please keep this movie on your radar! Check out his review below!

Shot in black and white by cinematographer Todd Martin, “Tatami” centers on Leila (Arienne Mandi), an Iranian judo athlete who is forced to withdraw from the world championships by her coach Maryam (Zar Amir). That said, her coach is getting pressure from the higher ups who do not want Leila to possibly face an Israeli rival in the final match.

 

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Mandi and Amir deliver two of this year’s most memorable performances. It will be a shame if “Tatami” gets buried during awards season due to lack of visibility. Maybe great word of mouth will garner this movie some welcome momentum.

***Check out our review of Tatami on this week’s CinemAddicts. Bruce Purkey’s review is also up on our YouTube Channel:

“Tatami” hits New York’s IFC Center on June 13th. The following week it travels to Los Angeles for a run at the Laemmle Royal. Keep this film on your radar and let us know your thoughts on “Tatami” in the comments!