Review: Sword and Sorrow

Sword and Sorrow is an Iranian animated film that debuted at the Fajr International Film Festival, offers a visually striking and historically grounded narrative. Co-directed by Emad Rahmani and Mehrzad Mehrabi, the film distinguishes itself through its pioneering use of MetaHuman scanning technology, resulting in a hyperrealistic animation style that brings its characters and settings to life with remarkable detail.

Set over a thousand years ago in the Mesopotamian city of Madain, Sword and Sorrow unfolds during a time of intense cruelty under the ruling Sultan. The story centers on Karen, a young boy whose simple birthday gift of a wooden sword becomes a poignant symbol of a life irrevocably altered by the Sultan’s tyranny. On his very birthday, Karen’s family falls victim to the Sultan’s wrath, but he is spared by his uncle.

Escaping the city, Karen is raised in a loving village, yet the memory of his lost family and his father’s unfulfilled mission of justice haunt him. The film follows Karen’s journey as he matures into a young man, and twenty years later, he finds an opportunity to return to Madain and finally pursue the justice his father sought.

The use of MetaHuman technology is a notable aspect of Sword and Sorrow. By meticulously scanning human subjects, the filmmakers have achieved a level of realism in facial expressions, character quality, and clothing design rarely seen in Iranian animation. This technical achievement lends a unique and immersive quality to the film’s historical setting and dramatic events, particularly the narrative focus on the period between the martyrdom of Imam Hassan (AS) and the arrival of Imam Hussein (AS) in Karbala. Unfortunately, some of the animation movements are quirky and actually quite hilarious in how bad they are. Remember Shrek and that scene where the Princess fights off Robin Hood and his thieves? There are a lot of guys that look like that and not even the main characters and the choreography is even worse.

The English audio features not very good acting with little depth and often dialogue that doesn’t match the characters’ mouth movements nor even the temperature for what’s going on on screen.

Sword and Sorrow is a significant contribution to Iranian animation, tackling weighty historical themes with a distinctive visual approach, but there are a lot of technical flaws, scripting flaws, and more that leaves a lot to be desired.