Composed of three segments (set in 1984, 1992 and 2001), Women's Prison deals with turbulent times in Iranian history and sensitive topics such as crime, corruption, prostitution, drug addiction and homosexuality. A compelling sociological portrait, it also satisfies the conventions of the prison film genre. The story follows the charged (and changing) relationship of Tahareh, the prison's new chief warden, and Mitra, a one-time student of midwifery now serving a long sentence for the murder of her stepfather. When chador-clad Tahareh starts her job, she is depicted as representing some of the grimmer values of the Revolution. Her goal is to gain control over the unruly inmates and she views non-conformist Mitra as an obstacle to be broken.
