The Perfect Candidate

Friday, May 14 - Thursday, June 3, 2021

A revealing look at the changing roles of women in Saudi Arabia from director Haifaa Al Mansour (Wadjda, Mary Shelley), THE PERFECT CANDIDATE follows Maryam, a determined young doctor who runs for city council after the male incumbent repeatedly ignores her request to fix the muddy road leading to her clinic. Despite her father and her community’s struggle to accept her as their town’s first female candidate, Maryam’s creative and ambitious campaign builds momentum, becoming a symbol for a larger movement.

“A movie as brave and humble as its heroine, one that gently threads the needle between a realistic today and a better tomorrow.” – David Ehrlich, IndieWire

Official selection: Venice Film Festival, TIFF, Sundance Film Festival

• Country Saudi Arabia | Germany
• Language Arabic with English subtitles
• Year 2019
• Running Time 105 minutes
• Distributor Music Box Films
• Director Haifaa Al Mansour
• Cast Mila Alzaharni, Dhay, Khalid Abdulrihm
• Accessibility Assistive Listening, T-Coil

IFC Center does not generally provide advisories about subject matter or potentially triggering content in films, as sensitivities vary from person to person. In addition to the synopses, trailers and other links on our website, further information about content and age-appropriateness for specific films can be found on Common Sense Media, IMDb and DoesTheDogDie.com as well as through general internet searches.