Mani Haghighi’s Subtraction is an eerie and multilayered drama that explores the fragility of relationships through the uncanny lens of doubles and mirrored existences. Set in a grey, rain-drenched Tehran, the film thrives on an atmosphere of alienation, where identity and desire slip constantly between recognition and estrangement.

The story revolves around a married couple who unexpectedly encounter another pair who looks exactly like them. Rather than relying on shock or fantasy, Haghighi grounds the narrative in realism, transforming the premise into a meditation on loneliness, mistrust, and the quiet fractures that haunt intimate lives.

Cinematographer Mahmoud Kalari crafts a visual palette of muted blues and greys, reinforcing the sense of displacement. The city becomes a labyrinth of glass, reflections, and shadows — a perfect stage for a tale where characters are forced to confront the doubles of their own fears and aspirations.

Performances are central to the film’s power: Taraneh Alidoosti delivers a performance of restraint and vulnerability, while Navid Mohammadzadeh balances anger with fragility, embodying both versions of himself in ways that feel subtle yet deeply unsettling.

What makes Subtraction so compelling is its refusal to explain or resolve neatly. Instead, it lingers in ambiguity, suggesting that the most threatening doubles are not external but those we harbor within ourselves. The film questions how well we truly know our partners, and by extension, ourselves.

Subtraction is a haunting psychological drama, an allegory about fractured identities in modern urban life, and a striking testament to the strength of contemporary Iranian cinema.