4.03.2008

Persepolis: Marjane Satrapi speaks



I saw PERSEPOLIS the other night. I was swept away by this film. It's astounding. I'm having second thoughts about RATATOUILLE -- I thought that film was great and incredibly entertaining and totally deserving of the Oscar, but... I'm beginning to think that PERSEPOLIS was probably even more deserving.



Lots of great press have been written about Marjane Satrapi's film. Boasting a 95% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, it certainly has support from the critics. Sooooo, if that's the case, then...why aren't we talking more about this film? It's a 2D animated feature film with some great animation, great story -- a true personal historical tale told from a single individual artist's view; a graphic novelist who's been able to successfully visualize her story up on the big screen. That's what all of us strive for, right? This is what it's all about for us filmmakers, us artists, us animator/directors, right? To be able to tell our story the way that we want to tell it, without studio interference, right? (However, I'm sure that Marjane probably had her ups and downs in getting her story told here. That's bound to happen when you convert your graphic novel into a film. But the end result is still 100 times more personal than any studio animated feature, if you ask me.)

Why aren't we screaming at the top of our lungs, telling everyone we meet to go see this film? We need to support these types of films or else we're going to have to subject ourselves to typical studio output. Base, trivial, executive-driven, vapid, stale studio output.



For the uninitiated, PERSEPOLIS is Satrapi's account of living in Iran as a woman, from a young girl with idealized visions of becoming a prophet, to growing up midst the Iranian revolution and forced to be stifled by gender politics and fewer civil liberties. Humorous and poignant, abrasive and tender, PERSEPOLIS moves like no other animated film. I got wrapped up in its story, its characters, its tone and settings. The graphic, stylized 2D world that Satrapi creates (in black & white, mind you) become flesh, blood and bone right before your very eyes. I was transfixed. GO SEE THIS FILM.



For all you Portlanders and NW'ers: It's worth noting that Marjane Satrapi herself will be speaking here in Portland, next Monday, April 7th, at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 7:30 p.m, downtown. More info about this event can be found HERE. I'm seriously thinking about going to this. I'd love to hear her speak. Looking forward to it.

Links:
PERSEPOLIS official site.
PERSEPOLIS Wikipedia entry (The Iranian government's reaction to the film are mentioned here.)
NY Animator/Director Michael Sporn's take on the film.

You can help me out by buying Satrapi's Complete Persepolis here:



GO SEE THIS FILM. SUPPORT.

5 comments:

  1. I so love the books. I think they are a real insight into a culture we fed so much propaganda about. I haven't seen the film but if the clips are anything go by the film looks like it may out do the comics... a rare thing indeed! I thought that RATATOUILLE was god but not that good... I can't wait to see PERSEPOLIS... Thanks for the post!

    ReplyDelete
  2. hey welcome back to the blogosphere!
    I definitely agree with you ward: Ratatouille is pretty good (i think that after seing the movie everybody wanted to cook sitting on the head of another person and steering him like a crane) but persepolis is another thing. it's so smart, tough but delicate and ironic at the same time. deserved completely the oscar. too political for the academy? too many european movies winning awards? could be.
    and the books are so good too.
    that girl is really brilliant, want to see what she's preparing next

    ReplyDelete
  3. "why aren't we talking more about this film? It's a 2D animated feature film with some great animation, great story -- a true personal historical tale told from a single individual artist's view; a graphic novelist who's been able to successfully visualize her story up on the big screen. That's what all of us strive for, right? "

    "Why aren't we screaming at the top of our lungs, telling everyone we meet to go see this film? We need to support these types of films or else we're going to have to subject ourselves to typical studio output. Base, trivial, executive-driven, vapid, stale studio output. "



    Amen , brother ! Totally agree with you.

    Why? Like you, I just don't get why there's not more detailed discussion of this film and what it could mean for traditional hand-drawn animation .

    I wish I had an answer. I think it's just a matter of telling as many people as possible to go see it . (which , given the film's limited release pattern in the U.S., hasn't been easy for everyone depending on where they live) . Hopefully it will find a wider audience in North America once it is released on DVD.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Ward, sir – good to see you on the internets again.

    I couldn't concur more. I knew very little about this movie when I saw it, and was equally swept away with similar doubts about comparisons with Ratatouille (which I personally thought had been the year's best movie, period). As a designer, Persepolis really came through as an incredible visual treat for me. And coming home from a European holiday this weekend, I watched it again on the inflight Air Canada TV dealies they have now, and almost cried when it cut short because the plane was landing. I have spread the word mightily, and will definitely be buying my own copy.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hey Ward,

    I just saw this today. Drat.

    Are you an ASIFA-PDX member? This is exactly the kind of stuff I wish I heard about through that channel, but I totally missed it.

    ReplyDelete