Persepolis (film)

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Persepolis
Image:Persepolis film.jpg
Directed by	Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud
Written by	Screenplay: Marjane Satrapi Vincent Paronnaud Comic Book: Marjane Satrapi
Starring	Chiara Mastroianni Catherine Deneuve Danielle Darrieux Simon Abkarian
Distributed by	Sony Pictures Classics
Release date(s)	Image:Flag of France.svg May 23, 2007 Image:Flag of the United States.svg December 25, 2007 Image:Flag of Canada.svg January 11, 2008
Running time	95 min
Country	France
Language	French, Persian, English, German
Budget	$7,300,000
Official website
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

Image:Marjane Satrapi mg 7536.jpg

Marjane Satrapi at the premiere of Persepolis

This article is about the the animated movie. For other uses, see Persepolis (disambiguation).

Persepolis is a 2007 animated film based on the graphic novel of the same name. The film was written and directed by Marjane Satrapi (author of the novel) and Vincent Paronnaud. It tells the story of a young girl in Iran during the Iranian Revolution. Through the eyes of the nine-year-old Marjane it shows how people's hopes were dashed as the fundamentalists took power, forced head coverings on women and imprisoned thousands. The title is a reference to the historical town of Persepolis.

The film won the Prize of the Jury at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival ^[1] and was released in France and Belgium on June 27. In her speech on receiving the Cannes award, Satrapi said "Although this film is universal, I wish to dedicate the prize to all Iranians."^[2]

The U.S. version is scheduled in theatres on December 25, 2007.

1 Plot summary
2 Technique
3 Cast
4 Reaction of Iranian government
5 Critical reception
6 Awards
7 See also
8 References
9 External links

[edit] Plot summary

Marjane is a child growing under the Shah's dictatorship. Her parents are urban educated people but hope for a change. Marjane dreams of being the last of the prophets.

With the revolts against the Shah, her uncle, a Communist aristocrat from Azerbaijan, is freed from prison and tells how he fought for the triumph of the proletariat even escaping to the Soviet Union. However, he is captured again and executed under the Islamic Revolution. He dedicates his single prison visit to Marjane, making a deep impression on her.

Marjane grows during the Revolution, wears a headscarf, Nike sneakers, and a "Punk Is Not Ded [sic]" jacket. She listens to "rebel" music like The Bee Gees. Her grandmother, a tender independent woman, is another of her influences. Later she evolves to Iron Maiden.

The Iran-Iraq war starts and her parents are concerned about her safety. Since she had studied at the French Lycee of Tehran, she is sent to the French Lycee of Vienna. The Iranian teenager does not fit in well in Austria, but ends up making friends with nihilist high-class kids. She spends Christmas holidays alone while her friends travel to meet their boring families in Brazil or other places. An unsuccessful relationship destroys her character. She sleeps on the streets of Vienna. After being hospitalized with blood-coughing bronchitis, she asks her parents to return to Iran no-questions-asked.

In Iran, she becomes depressed upon seeing the situation of her family and former friends. At the end, she gets herself together (to the tune of "The Eye of the Tiger") and studies Fine Arts in the University of Tehran. Things like studying anatomy with chadored women or the party-interruption of Guards of the Revolution cause her to protest.

She finally migrates to Paris leaving her family behind.

[edit] Technique

The film is black and white, like the original graphic novels. The "present day" scenes are shown in colour, and some of the historic narrative resembles a shadow theater show.

[edit] Cast

The voice actors include:

Chiara Mastroianni as teenage and adult Marjane, in the French and English soundtracks.
Catherine Deneuve as Mother, in the French and English soundtracks.
Danielle Darrieux as Grandmother
Simon Abkarian as Father

The English soundtrack will include:

[edit] Reaction of Iranian government

The film has drawn complaints from the Iranian government. Even before its debut at the Cannes Film Festival, the government-connected organisation Iran Farabi Foundation sent a letter to the French embassy in Tehran stating "This year the Cannes Film Festival, in an unconventional and unsuitable act, has chosen a movie about Iran that has presented an unrealistic face of the achievements and results of the glorious Islamic Revolution in some of its parts." ^[3]

In June 2007 the film was dropped from the lineup of the Bangkok International Film Festival following pressure from the Iranian government. Festival director Chattan Kunjara na Ayudhya stated "I was invited by the Iranian embassy to discuss the matter and we both came to mutual agreement that it would be beneficial to both countries if the film was not shown" and "It is a good movie in artistic terms, but we have to consider other issues that might arise here."^[4] ^[5]