Review of Not Without My Daughter (1991) by Abba R — 02 Jan 2016

I read the book which is based on Betty Mahmoody's real life experiences; and also read the book by her daughter, My Name is Mahtob. The movie is faithful to the true story and Betty Mahmoody was involved as an advisor when it was filmed.

I enjoyed seeing the movie. Betty and her daughter point out this is not meant to reflect on all Iranians or all Muslims, but this was their experience, and it is very true to the book. Sally Field's acting was superb.

I think the husband in the story, Dr. Mahmoody, may have been mentally ill - there were clues to this in the book in my opinion, but I don't know if Betty realized. It was a situation of domestic violence.

In any case, many good people in Iran helped her to escape, to return to the U.S., and the story has a very happy ending. It is a very fascinating story, and the acting was great. That little girl played her role well, but Sally was really superb as Betty Mahmoody.