Fireworks Wednesday

Set in Tehran around Nowruz, the Iranian New Year, Fireworks Wednesday follows Rouhi, a young woman about to be married who takes a cleaning job with an affluent household. On her first day, she is pulled into a domestic conflict between Mojdeh and her husband Morteza, whose marriage is in crisis. Mojdeh suspects her husband of an affair with a neighbour, Simin, and asks Rouhi to watch the couple and report back. What Rouhi learns unsettles not only the family but her own plans.

The film is Asghar Farhadi's first feature as director, the earliest entry in a run that continues through About Elly, A Separation and later titles, including Parallel Tales. Farhadi wrote the screenplay with Mani Haghighi, and Jamal Sadatian produced. Taraneh Alidoosti plays Rouhi, with Hedie Tehrani as Mojdeh, Hamid Farrokhnejad as Morteza, Pantea Bahram as Simin and Matin Heydarnia as Amir Ali.

Made in Iran and released in 2006, the drama runs 102 minutes. On IMDb it holds 7.6 from roughly 15,000 votes, and on TMDB 7.4 from some 153 votes. A critics' rating of 7.7 from 45 reviews places it close to, and slightly above, the audience scores, suggesting a broadly consistent response across both groups.