Not Without My Daughter

Not Without My Daughter is a 1991 drama film depicting the escape of American citizen Betty Mahmoody and her daughter from her husband in Iran. The film was shot in the United States, Turkey and Israel, and the main characters Betty Mahmoody and Sayed Bozorg Moody Mahmoody are played by Sally Field and Alfred Molina, respectively. Sheila Rosenthal and Roshan Seth star as Mahtob Mahmoody and Houssein the smuggler, respectively. The film has been criticized for its alleged misrepresentation of Iranians and of Iranian culture.

Moody becomes more hostile and abusive, preventing her from leaving the house or using the telephone. Betty briefly manages to visit the American Interests Section of the Swiss Embassy, but is told that she is now an Iranian citizen since she is married to an Iranian, and as long as she lives in Iran, she cannot leave the country without her husbands written consent and has no parental rights over her daughter. Moody learns of Bettys meeting and threatens to kill her if she tries anything again.Knowing that her chances of escape are minuscule, Betty conforms to her husbands wishes in order to gain the trust of Moody and his family. By chance, during a trip to the marketplace, she meets a sympathetic shopkeeper who overhears her telephone conversations with the Swiss Embassy and puts her in contact with a humanitarian Iranian, Hossein, who offers to help Betty and Mahtob in their passage back to America. The plan becomes complicated when Betty receives news from America that her father is seriously ill and may be dying. Moody approves of Betty returning to see her dying father, but will not let Mahtob go with her. Betty decides to wait to return to America with Mahtob, but Moody unknowingly foils her by having her booked on a flight several days early thanks to his relatives contacts in the airport. ........

Source: Wikipedia