It's been months since Jafar Panahi, stuck in jail, has been awaiting a verdict by the appeals court. By depicting a day in his life, Panahi and Mojtaba Mirtahmasb try to portray the deprivations looming in contemporary Iranian cinema.
This Is Not a Film is a bold artistic statement, a guided career retrospective, a political act, and a mediation on the very nature of cinema – all at once, with neither self-pity or intellectual elitism to muddy the waters.
Earns four stars for filmic achievement and six for bravery.
Drawing on revealing clips from Panahi’s previous films, TINAF reveals not only the realities of artistic censorship, but its firework-laden finale shows how cinema thrives on spontaneity.
There is unlikely to be a wittier, braver, more serious film shown in Britain this year.
A film which only reveals its true colours after intense contemplation.
This film is a samizdat cine-poem in defence of cinema and freedom: the only response is contempt for those government bullies and bureaucrats ranged against Jafar Panahi.
The film, smuggled out to France in a cake, was a late submission at Cannes last year, and a tasty treat it is.
What it all adds up to is a ruefully witty essay on what does or does not constitute cinema: Jean-Luc Godard grapples endlessly (some would say incomprehensibly) with these debates, but Panahi’s invigorating directness cuts to the chase.
The result is a superb piece of cinema, and something that's not cinema – passionate resistance, a humorous cri de coeur, a message in a bottle sent to the world, and a way for Panahi to keep his hand in.
The film is never directly confrontational – it certainly eschews diatribes against the current regime – but its point about repressing the natural urge to tell stories is forcefully made.
This is an important film, a valuable insight into contemporary Iran and the challenges facing their artistic communities.
Jafar Panahi was banned from directing or editing...and still got a movie out
Glasgow Film Theatre, Glasgow from Monday April 2, 2012, until Wednesday April 4, 2012. More info: http://www.glasgowfilm.org/theatre/
Dundee Rep Theatre, Dundee from Monday April 23, 2012, until Thursday April 26, 2012. More info: www.dundeereptheatre.co.uk
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