TIFF Hidden Gems Spotlight: "Seven Days" [Review]

One of the great parts of attending festivals is discovery. There are so many films (278 over 11 days) to choose from with little to no information about them outside of a quick tagline and a still photo that you run into most experiences blind. This is particularly true for smaller cinema, something that is hard to come by with a packed, on the ground schedule but one that will almost always give you a hidden gem you never saw coming. “Seven Days” is that film, a heartbreaking yet triumphant story of activism vs motherhood framed at the center of Iranian protests for women’s rights. From the moment the story begins to take shape, it grips you with arresting emotion and powerful imagery and never lets go until the final moments. “Seven Days,” which I saw at Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), is a powerful story with something to say, steadfast in its political commentary while never losing sight of the themes of family, love, loss, and standing up for what you believe in.Writt...