A One Mann’s Movies review of “It Was Just An Accident” (From the 2025 London Film Festival). (2025, 3.5*, 12A).
After a blizzard of great LFF films last week, there is just one film that I previously saw at the LFF that is released into UK cinemas: “It Was Just An Accident”. I’m not sure how broad a release it will get – you may need to search for it in the boutique and art-house cinemas – but this is well worth your attention.
I first posted this review on October 13th 2025.
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A surprise winner of the Palme d’Or at Cannes this year, the Iranian film “It Was Just An Accident” veers into slightly Hitchcockian territory when a man travelling with his family is suspected of being a notorious war criminal. A film that is constantly surprising you, going from thriller vibes to farcical comedy and back again.
One Mann’s Movies Rating:
Plot:
A family man (Ebrahim Azizi) is driving on an unlit rural road in Iran when he hits and kills a stray dog. The accident damages his car and he is forced to stop at a local garage to try to get it fixed. But while there, the garage owner, Vahid (Vahid Mobasseri) hears the man’s false leg squeaking in a most familiar way. Based solely on that sound (he was blindfolded in prison) he becomes convinced that the man is actually a torturer who terrorised him as a political prisoner. But there is still some doubt in his mind.
Certification:
UK: 12A; US: PG-13. (From the BBFC web site: “Infrequent strong language, moderate violence”.)
Talent:
Starring: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr, Afssaneh Najmabadi, Delmaz Najafi.
Directed by: Jafar Panahi.
Written by: Jafar Panahi.
Running Time: 1h 45m.
Summary:
Positives:
- A plot that keeps you guessing until almost the end.
- Tense and well-crafted scenes
- Some very funny, almost farcical, scenes of infighting between the investigators.
- A clever, tense ending.
Negatives:
- Sometimes the farce becomes so broad that it detracts from the thriller element.
Full Review of “It Was Just An Accident”:
A decent premise for a thriller.
It’s lazy to call something “Hitchcockian” and I do realise I do it all the time, most recently for the LFF film “A Private Life“. But in this case, I think it is justified. For Hitchcock loved putting an everyman, like “North By Northwest”s Roger Thornhill in a dangerous situation where he is mistaken for another man. Here, as the audience, you cannot but help put yourself in the position of the hapless family man that his oppressors believe to be the maniac “Peg-Leg” torturer.
The man is thrown into a shallow grave in the desert and starts to be buried alive. But then he pleads with him, stating that he only lost his leg last year and shows Vahid the raw and oozing stump to prove it. What follows is a manic trip around the city to find other victims of ‘Peg-Leg’ to try to identify him, causing havoc for wedding photographer Shiva (Mariam Afshari) AND her happy couple Golrokh (Hadis Pakbaten) and Ali (Majid Panahi). Things verge into the dangerous when they further recruit the combustible and unpredictable Hamid (Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr).
Well-defined characters.
Even though this is a foreign land with very foreign customs, the film tends to craft a fine set of different characters. What is common amongst many of these victims is that they are partly obsessed with knowing the truth (and if found to be ‘Eqbal the Peg-Leg’, administering swift justice) and partly desperate to opt out and bank the progress they’ve been making on the recovery of their mental health.
Suspicion is also front and centre, with some of the group even suspecting Vahid and Eqbal as being in cahoots in order to corral the victims and extract information from them for further retribution.
The film also suggests how corrupt some of the police are in Iran, with two coppers having a credit-card pad on them to pocket ‘contributions’ for those without cash (keying in the amount themselves!)
Veers into the farcical.
The film follows an engaging thriller plot, laced with occasional dark humour. That is, until their captive’s phone goes off and a family crisis ensues. This is all a little bit too deranged and farcical for me to really believe in and it rather took me out of the story.
A clever finale.
No spoilers here, but the very ending of the film is an almost static shot but a terrifyingly tense moment.
Summary Thoughts:
This is a decent little Iranian thriller although I’d question whether it was really good enough to win the Palme d’Or… I’d like to understand what else it was up against. I suspect a lot of the love is down to the respect of the bravery of Iranian director Jafar Panahi in standing up against the regime, despite faing prison sentences and worse.
But it’s definitely worth a watch if you can get to see it. As it is a Cannes winner, and it’s been acquired by Neon, I suspect it will get a limited art-house cinema release at some point.
Tickets for the remaining London Film Festival showings on 14th and 18th October are currently sold out, but here is the booking web site to check for returns or other showings.
Where to watch?
Trailer:
A teaser trailer for the film is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nF04v-ze2Yc. This is a good trailer, giving nothing must away.
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