Persepolis

Dir: Vincent Paronnaud, Marjane Satrapi
Starring: Catherine Deneuve, Danielle Darrieux, Simon Abkarian

Adapted from Satrapi’s autobiographical graphic novel series, Persepolis simultaneously tells the story of Iran’s bloody Islamic revolution and Satrapi’s childhood, most notably her turbulent teenage years. The film captivates immediately with its beguiling visuals. The film echoes the monochrome style of the graphic novels, chosen to make the film universal to all cultures. It never feels cartoony due to the use of cinematic techniques such as jump-cut editing, which lends the picture a greater sense of authenticity than conventional animation.

The autobiographical narrative means the film is granted some fascinating characters, most notably Marjane’s straight talking grandmother who provides many of the film’s lighter moments. During the course of the picture Marjane is exiled to Vienna and this storyline provides some of the film’s strongest scenes. The culture clash between a battle-hardened, experienced, teenage Marjane and some Austrian air-headed, would-be revolutionaries is not only entertaining but also thought provoking; so too is Marjane’s misguided attempt to hide her Muslim identity.

The film also benefits from strong acting with key members of the French cast reprising their roles in the dubbed English version, which introduces Sean Penn as Marjane’s father, Iggy Pop as her imprisoned communist uncle and Gena Rowlands as her grandmother. This approach truly provides the best of both worlds, making the film accessible to English audiences while not watering down its geographical authenticity with ludicrous American accents.

While strong overall; the film is not perfect, let down by an occasional jarring shift from a factual telling of Iran’s bloody history to Marjane’s adolescent trials and tribulations. This minor flaw aside, the film is both an entertaining and a thought provoking example of the power of religious fundamentalism; particularly important in the current climate of fraught international relations.

Out now at Cornerhouse (both subtitled and dubbed versions)

8/10