War, one of the most brutal act of all. Responsible of so many deaths around the world, and also life changing experience for everyone who live it. Cinema have represented in so many ways. In the battlefield, returning home after the war, the people who have to continue their lives while a family member is drafted and last but not least the technology behind the war.

In essence war, could considered metaphorically speaking a horror tale. But what about if you put those two elements on screen. A horror film about the war?

Under the Shadow is the British Iranian film directed by Babak Anvari about a woman who lives the horror of war inside her own apartment.

During the years 1980- 1988 The Iran-Iraq war took place, a conflict compared to many as World War I. Teheran and Bagdad were constantly bombing, most of the citizens have to live this reality for almost a decade. In the mist of the war Shideh (Narges Rashidi) a married woman who is attending to medical school, but later expel for be attached to leftist groups. Her husband Iraj (Bobby Naderi) a doctor for the military is traveling most of the time leaving her daughter Dorsa (Avin Manshadi) staying with mom. They live in a building with other families, their typical days will be shelling in the basement in the basement building to protect themselves from the attacks of the Iraqi government.

In one the attacks a missile get’s stuck in the living room of one of the neighbors, causing him a heart attack and later die. For Shideh as a medical student becomes mysterious when the daughter of the neighbor insist that he saw a ghost which causing him a emotional distress. During one of the shelling Dorsa meets a new boy who is staying with one of the neighbors which was telling her ghost stories. Shied is very skpectical about the whole stories.

To me the main idea of Under The Shadow is to create a metaphor about the horror of war represented in the presence of a ghost living a building. This families are in constant attacks with common missile strikes, they are unexpected and unpredictable, just like a ghost will be. People are living in fear and they cannot control what ever is around them.

Making a horror movie about the Iran-Iraq war is a risky move, but it pays off, because it not only shows the absurd act of war, but it enhance it with political and social criticism. Shideh loves to do aerobics and she do it by watching Jane Fonda tapes which are consider illegal in that time. Another time she and Dorsa are trying to scape the building from the ghost and end up in jail, because Shideh wasn’t wearing her proper attire. Doesn’t matter if you are trying to scape the horror of war, something worst is waiting for you, perhaps the law…

Under the Shadow is a great discovering from the typical horror films that you see everyday in Hollywood, is a movie with a inner meaning.