In this topical and typically slippery comedy drama from prize-winning writer-director, Jafar Panahi, Iran is no country for women. It’s a scary place, too, for rule-flouting men. Quietly and quirkily, the 62-year-old filmmaker focuses on the culture wars dividing the nation. By the end, you’ll be in smithereens.
The real Panahi is in serious trouble - this July, he was arrested and sentenced to six years in prison, though he’s been viewed as an enemy of the state since at least 2010. It’s that version of himself that we see here. Filmmaker “Panahi” (all crumpled T-shirts and pasty jowls) is holed up in a village near the Turkish border. He’s banned from making movies, but has found a way to keep working. With the help of a proxy, Panahi directs a movie that’s shot in Turkey, but is all about Iran. And he does it via Skype.
