Persepolis

Persepolis: Movie Review
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Persepolis: Movie Review
Persepolis easily makes for one of the wittiest and most insightful animation films shifting from the common trends witnessed in the genre by a captivating depiction of Marjane Satrapi’s coming-of-age stories documented in her comic-book series. Directed by Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud, Persepolis offers a simple story of Ms. Satrapi’s cultural dilemma she faces while growing up in Iran amidst the Islamic revolution in the late 1970s. The animation film features Chiara Mastroianni as Marjane’s voice as a child, teenager, and adult, Catherine Deneuve as her mother’s voice, Simon Abkarian voicing her father, and her feisty grandmother’s voice played by Danielle Darrieux. Released in 2007 in France, the film further features French voice-overs with English subtitles.
Marjane recounts her experiences growing up under the dictatorial regime of the Shah, the mainly patriarchal regime of the Mullah after the Islamic revolution, and a short stint in Vienna, Austria. She grows up in a family that nurtures her free-spirited approach to life through its staunch belief in their country’s freedom and justice for all. Marjane explores different cultural practices exercised by the secular members of the Iranian community amidst the Shah’s oppressive regime. For instance, Marjane expresses her love for Bruce Lee and fondly mimics his martial arts skills during family gatherings or meetings. Though the Shah restricted divergent political views and ideologies, his regime allowed Iranians to exercise their cultural freedoms across bot...