Review of Offside (2015) by Joe E — 05 Jun 2012

More than anything, I was surprised to find that this film made me feel extremely nostalgic - which is an odd emotion to feel, given that it deals with the inequality of women in iran. but somehow the whole air of camaraderie that's a strong part of iranian culture was depicted so exactly in this film.

I also liked the fact that panahi understood the complexity of human character and didn't make the film a black and white fight between good and bad - even the officers who captured the girls were humanized as just following orders.

I understand panahi's choice to use soccer as the means through which opposing sides put aside their differences and come together - and I know actual girls who would dress up like boys to get into the stadium - but I still couldn't identify with those girls in any way (except one - but I don't want to spoil the film) especially when the consequences of getting caught are so severe.

the film had some funny moments and some endearing characters and in the end managed to get an emotional rise out of me - but I still wonder if that's because of the film's mastery or because a part of me misses iran.

i'd also be really interested to find out how panahi managed to film this - the sets/background are extremely difficult to replicate - did he actually shoot the film on the day of the game?