Universal Language

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2:08

Universal Language

2025

1h 29m

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

95%

Tomatometer

84 Reviews

71%

Popcornmeter

50+ Ratings

In a mysterious and surreal interzone somewhere between Tehran and Winnipeg, the lives of multiple characters interweave with each other in surprising and mysterious ways. Gradeschoolers Negin and Nazgol find a sum of money frozen in the winter ice and try to claim it. Meanwhile, Massoud leads a group of increasingly-befuddled tourists through the monuments and historic sites of Winnipeg. Matthew quits his meaningless job in a Québecois government office and sets out upon an enigmatic journey to visit his mother. Space, time and personal identities crossfade, interweave and echo into a surreal comedy of misdirection.

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Critics Consensus

Bridging two nations with a clever and surreal conceit, Universal Language is a culture clash comedy brimming with wisdom.

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Saffron Maeve

Sight & Sound

Dec 18

A brilliantly bizarre comedy that imagines a Canada where the two official languages are Farsi and French.

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Stephen Romei

The Australian

May 23

3/5

This is an unconventional film that slowly drew me in. There’s a tenderness about it as the boundaries between the characters loosen.

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Jake Wilson

Sydney Morning Herald

May 22

2.5/5

...I can imagine in principle how it might be possible to find Universal Language a moving experience, even without being familiar with any of its reference points. But I'm bound to say it left me pretty cold.

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Calvin Law

The Asian Cut

Jul 31

3.5/5

That Rankin segues from all this enjoyable humour into something quite strangely moving as we delve further into his stories, is quite impressive.

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Josh Larsen

LarsenOnFilm

Jul 2

3.5/4

... a bittersweet consideration of what it means to belong to a family, a city, a country.

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Filipe Freitas

Always Good Movies

Jun 3

4/5

His [Rankin] movie comes with a hard core of disillusionment but also hope in humanity, and viewers in tune with his offbeat sensibilities will enjoy both the deadpan humor and the bold unconventional choices.

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LTK

02/19/2025

Not what you will expect

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MB C

@MB.Cinema Jan 17

Universal Language is an ambitious drama set in a surreal alternate reality blending Iranian and Canadian cultures.....The film favors abstract ideas over narrative momentum, presenting interconnected characters without clear dramatic goals.....Its fragmented structure and heavy symbolism often feel more conceptual than emotionally engaging.....Surreal moments and multilingual play show visual intelligence, but repetition dulls their impact over time....With little central conflict or character evolution, the experience becomes distant and demanding.....Universal Language is thoughtful in intent, yet weighed down by excess abstraction and limited emotional payoff.....

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Barry Z

@Barry1234 Jan 1

oh my god i loved this quirky, unique movie! Slow paced but very witty, surprising, laugh out loud funny at times, and memorable. Definitely not for everyone, more of a cinephile movie.

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g j

@RT02395222 Dec 12

It sent me to sleep at the 45 minute mark too. While it picks up in the final act, much of the film felt almost malciously unfunny.

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kokiaia T

@RT04537678 Nov 29

This has to be one of the worst movies i have ever seen in my entire life. Very unfunny, cold and not recommended. Unfortunately i can't give it 0 stars so its 0.5 . These comments giving it many stars/points have to be bots because if you actually see this movie, in no way is it enchanting, funny or warm. Very cold actually. I saw this movie for free but if i had to spend money on whatever this garbage is then i don't know.

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Fong Kok Hoong F

@RT29722865 Jun 23

Three intertwining subplots of two girls attempting to claim a banknote frozen in ice, a tour guide ushering disinterested tourists to questionable places of interest and an autobiographical character returning home to visit his mother made up this oddball headscratcher but perhaps tongue-in-cheek for Persian and Canadian audiences in this Canadian entry for Best International Feature Film at the 97th Academy Awards that is set in an alternate reality of a Farsi-speaking Winnipeg with Iranian influences.

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Matthew Rankin

Director

Rojina Esmaeili

Actor

Danielle Fichaud

Actor

Sobhan Javadi

Actor

Saba Vahedyousefi

Nazgol

Pirouz Nemati

Massoud

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Universal Language: Trailer 1

2:08

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Synopsis

In a mysterious and surreal interzone somewhere between Tehran and Winnipeg, the lives of multiple characters interweave with each other in surprising and mysterious ways. Gradeschoolers Negin and Nazgol find a sum of money frozen in the winter ice and try to claim it. Meanwhile, Massoud leads a group of increasingly-befuddled tourists through the monuments and historic sites of Winnipeg. Matthew quits his meaningless job in a Québecois government office and sets out upon an enigmatic journey to visit his mother. Space, time and personal identities crossfade, interweave and echo into a surreal comedy of misdirection.

Director: Matthew Rankin
Producer: Sylvain Corbeil
Screenwriter: Pirouz Nemati, Ila Firouzabadi, Matthew Rankin
Distributor: Oscilloscope Laboratories
Production Co: Metafilms
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: Persian
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 14, 2025, Limited
Runtime: 1h 29m
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.66:1)

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