Cartoonist Marjane Satrapi penned an autobiographical series of critically acclaimed graphic novels, on which this film has been based. Persepolis tells her story as she grows up in Tehran under the rule of a tyrannical Shah and the early stage of the Iran-Iraq war. In her mid-teens (early 1980s), her family sends her to study in Vienna, where she discovers counter-culture, punk music, and ill-fated romance. Later, when she finds herself longing for the repressed simplicity of home, she returns to attend college in Iran after the Islamic revolution only to still feel like a fish out of water.
For this reviewer, Iranian history is not a topic of expertise. Thankfully, Persepolis paints a clear picture of the time period from the fresh perspective of a child/adolescent. The striking two-toned animation is simple yet effective, providing an interesting counterpoint to a highly dramatic storyline, filled with real tension and humanity.
Despite the child-like artwork, Persepolis displays a sense of maturity. By delving into her own experiences, Satrapi has created a cast of real characters and shrewdly observes their peculiar idiosyncrasies (Marjane’s straight-talking no-nonsense grandmother was a hit with the audience). Most interesting is how Satrapi openly reveals herself to have been a flawed character. Whilst in Vienna, Marjane is shunted from home to home, never really finding anywhere to fit in. The choices she makes are frequently foolish, and she never becomes a typical ‘heroine’.
Despite not shying away from the repression that her world has suffered, Satrapi provides plenty of humour and warmth. The film, although set in Iran and Austria, and made in France, belies something universally sympathetic about Marjane’s youthful pursuit of freedom.
A weakness, if we’re fussy, is that the narrative sometimes feels episodic, as if lifted too faithfully from the page.
Persepolis, winner of the Jury Prize at Cannes, blends the political and the personal with ease and clarity, creating a witty coming-of-age story, artfully rendered and recounted with warmth.
