It's election day and a gruff soldier is assigned to spend his day taking around an election official from village to village in a rather unpopulated desert island-like section of Iran. The soldier doesn't much care for the assignment partly because he doesn't see the point of voting, partly because he doesn't much trust the people in the area and mostly because the election official is a woman.

The woman is steadfast and determined to get every vote from every single person she can. But she runs into a lot of apathy along the way. Many of the people in the small villages see no reason to vote and more still don't think it will make any difference or change their lives.

Anyone who knows anything about Iranian politics will realizes the irony of the film. While voting is important it truly won't make a difference if the people voting don't know the issues or the candidates. What's more the party system in Iran is a theocratic republic - which is controlled by religious clerics - so it's not easy for any progressive politician to truly make change.

The woman encounters many different people all of whom have unusual views about voting. Some whom she meet include some women who bring along a man to do their voting, workers who don't have time to vote and one guy who says that God is his only choice. A lot of the situations seem absurd but they are handled in a subtle and humorous way. For instance, after the whole day is over the soldier decides to cast his ballot for the election official since she worked so hard to get votes.

Secret Ballot, directed by Babak Payami, is a little slow and may not be of interest to the viewer who likes a little bit of action in their film going experience. But what it has – like many Iranian films – is a humanitarian spirit, real life ambiance and a sense that hope and justice can prevail in a country that seems anti-democratic and behind the times. The film has a deliberate mixed message about the importance of voting. At once it seems completely futile and yet somehow necessary for the future. Even though the woman runs into nothing but obstacles you just get the feeling that some day it will all be worthwhile.

Video:
The DVD is presented in 1.65 to 1 and looks excellent. The entire film is shot in desert and beach locales with pleasing sunlight in each scene. No compression artifact is detectable. The image is clear and sharp throughout.

Audio:
Presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 in Farsi with English subtitles the film has good audio. There is a very delicate musical score of flutes and strings that lends a minimalist feel to the whole film. The sound is important but this is the kind of film that doesn't benefit from surround sound. In fact, there are many quite moments in the film.

Extras:
The only extra is a theatrical trailer.

Overall:
This Iranian film about the difficulty of getting the vote out in a remote area of Iran is allegorical and informative without having an overbearing or didactic message. It is a bit slow paced with amateurish acting but involving nonetheless. The DVD is the bare minimum but it looks and sounds very good and is worth watching.