DISAPPEARANCE is a slow-burning but engrossing tale of two young Iranians seeking medical help after they sleep with each other. Eager to avoid the overbearing attentions of their parents, the film follows them through the night as they navigate the social mores and administrative bureaucracy standing in their way.

Our introduction to the couple is as Sara (Sadaf Asgari) claims to have been raped, bleeding and with low blood pressure. Her apparent brother, Hamed (Amir Reza Ranjbaran), appears swiftly and it quickly becomes apparent to the viewer they are lovers, attempting to get treatment for Sara as a young, unmarried couple.

They trail around a number of Tehran hospitals executing different deceptions. Every one is presented in a similar way: slightly blue-green light, oppressively sterile and a lack of warmth. Long camera takes emphasise the labyrinthine corridors of the hospitals, a metaphor for the winding bureaucracy and endless moral codes they must endure.

There is no histrionics in the characters’ actions, the closest to a high pitch we come is in Sara’s anxiety at Hamed’s potential for fleeing the situation. This is artfully expressed as well, any lingering absences from the frame built to highlight Sara’s burgeoning anxiety at her situation both medically and socially.

There is a gentle creep in DISAPPEARANCE, as the situation spirals. Not uncontrollably, but with a growing sadness at the needlessness of the scenario – antiquated moral codes forcing the pair to keep digging deeper into their deception. Ali Asgari has a subtle but commanding mastery of her debut feature.