Wednesday, August 20, 2008 
Photo: Sony Classics
Do you live in New York or LA? Well, aren’t you just fancy, because you’ll be the first to see Jafar Panahi’s dark soccer comedy Offside in theaters this Friday, March 23 (it’ll be opening in wider release shortly thereafter). From Flavorpill:
A gaggle of girls intent on catching Iran’s World Cup qualifier against Bahrain (shot in real time during the match) subvert the Iranian law forbidding women to enter spectator stadiums by decking themselves out as rabid male fans, and are snared by soldiers grudgingly serving a tour of duty. In the part-documentary, part-feature Offside, Iranian director Jafar Panahi (Crimson Gold, 2003) neatly sidesteps the character-as-essay-points strangulation that fells many works of social criticism with a hefty dose of visual wit — a new element in his already full bag of aesthetically innovative tricks — and a highly nuanced examination of gender in a country caught between two eras.
I like the tenacious girls in this movie, because it’s not what many Westerners picture when they hear the phrase “Iranian girl”… but the fact is that I’ve known very few Iranian women who are not defiant when someone tells them no. And the fact that this movie has a big element of comedy will hopefully help make it a hit with audiences beyond the Iranian diaspora.
Thu, 22 Mar 2007 04:55:00 -0700
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