Review of This Is Not a Film (2011) by Bill T — 09 Jul 2014
A masterwork meta-film about young girl whose dreams of university caused her to be locked in her room, struggling to communicate through closed doors, acted out by a director whose passion for expression caused him to be locked under house arrest , struggling to communicate through the closed door of a repressive regime.
While the low rating reviewers are quick to point out that the obvious themes of repression, censorship, expression, revolution, etc. could have been more effectively communicated in other mediums, I would argue that Panahi was striving for something different--something more esoteric--with this film.
Does it not occur to those reviewers that this "documentary" is in-fact a meta-film and may not actually be a documentary at all? Had those other reviewers never considered that perhaps Panahi *is* Maryam (the girl from his screenplay), and that the recitation of his screenplay did not end when he stripped the tape off the rug? This was my first Panahi film, but he made an instant fan out of me.
This review of This Is Not a Film (2011) was written by Bill T on 09 Jul 2014.
This Is Not a Film has generally received positive reviews.
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