No Bears

I can't write a better review than the one that Iranian authorities did. They took one look at this playful and deadly serious film about artistic honesty and deceit, idealism and pragmatism, the bizarrity of borders and the power of being the one who gets to edit... and promptly collapsed all those scary, human ambiguities into a jail sentence.

“No Bears” is one of the year’s best films, showcasing Jafar Panahi’s fresh and subversive voice, which condemns tradition and oppression while crafting a genuinely entertaining story. Despite the limitations imposed upon him, Panahi has managed to create a film that is both humorous and dark, with a message that is both powerful and prescient.

Maybe Panahi's best work since This Is Not a Film. An engrossing, playful and yet angry work about the elusive nature of filmmaking and the power of images in the contemporary world -- be it in a film mirroring a couple trying to get out of Iran, be it in a simple photograph of a couple that disrupts an entire community. Fuck tradition.

Bears: 0 Ghanbars: 1

Panahi's voice is so singular, and his audacity so evident considering the duress he operates under, that all his films are inherently impressive at this point. Compared to the rest, "No Bears" is nevertheless disappointing. He again plays himself in the lead, but like in "Three Faces", he tries to tell other characters' stories through his own half-fictionalized perspective. This time, it just doesn't work. Leading up to a rather drastic ending, not enough connection is established.

There's a vitality to this film that is due at least in part to the oppression against him. All his best work comes from a place of grappling with the oppressive structures of his society. That he is able to retain any measure of levity (and there is a good bit here) is its own little miracle. But it makes sense--despite the best efforts of his government, he is doing what he loves. May it continue.

benim de oyuncu ve produksiyonunda bulundugum cafer hocanın son filmi.