"Taxi" or "Teheran Taxi" is an 80-minute movie from Iran this year. Anybody who has a bit of interest into cinema from that country/region, will definitely have heard about Jafar Panahi, an Iranian filmmaker who received honors all over the world, but was put into prison and under arrest in his home country. The only other work I have seen from him is "Offside", a movie about a couple young woman who want to watch a football game in the stadium, which is, of course, not allowed for women in Iran.
Panahi is also prohibited from making movies, but as you see from this one here, that won't stop him. Basically, the whole thing is scripted, even if Panahi plays himself here and poses as a taxi driver because he is not allowed to make movies. Several of his friends appear in this movie. We see a motorbike crash, a couple old women transporting goldfish, Panahi's niece, a friend of him who got mugged etc. Sometimes the fine line between reality and fiction vanishes, but that's not a problem at all if you cannot be 100% sure what is going on. Funny also how the guy who sells "Walking Dead", "Big Bang Theory" etc. accuses Panahi of making a movie in his car and that the other passengers were paid actors with him being an actor himself in fact.
I must say there were no real edge-of-seat moments in this one, but it was a decent watch from start to finish. The closest to greatness was possibly the scene with the girl trying to convince the boy to give back the money. It shows us that justice is not lost in the country, but it takes a lot to overcome your demons. I also liked the ending, not only because of the reference to the start, but also because it's actually a pair of criminals who keep this film from running any longer. The irony with the Iranian governments strict policy on Panahi and his works is obvious. And of course, Panahi and his niece get punished the very moment they try to do something good, i.e. bring back the purse to the old ladies. As a whole, I recommend this movie. There is no real greatness in here in terms of the plot, but the background story and filming conditions are the real heart and soul of the movie and also the reason why this one won quite a few awards, especially here in Berlin. Finally, it was nice to see Panahi healthy and in fairly good shape and spirit, after all he had to go through. Recommended.
Panahi is also prohibited from making movies, but as you see from this one here, that won't stop him. Basically, the whole thing is scripted, even if Panahi plays himself here and poses as a taxi driver because he is not allowed to make movies. Several of his friends appear in this movie. We see a motorbike crash, a couple old women transporting goldfish, Panahi's niece, a friend of him who got mugged etc. Sometimes the fine line between reality and fiction vanishes, but that's not a problem at all if you cannot be 100% sure what is going on. Funny also how the guy who sells "Walking Dead", "Big Bang Theory" etc. accuses Panahi of making a movie in his car and that the other passengers were paid actors with him being an actor himself in fact.
I must say there were no real edge-of-seat moments in this one, but it was a decent watch from start to finish. The closest to greatness was possibly the scene with the girl trying to convince the boy to give back the money. It shows us that justice is not lost in the country, but it takes a lot to overcome your demons. I also liked the ending, not only because of the reference to the start, but also because it's actually a pair of criminals who keep this film from running any longer. The irony with the Iranian governments strict policy on Panahi and his works is obvious. And of course, Panahi and his niece get punished the very moment they try to do something good, i.e. bring back the purse to the old ladies. As a whole, I recommend this movie. There is no real greatness in here in terms of the plot, but the background story and filming conditions are the real heart and soul of the movie and also the reason why this one won quite a few awards, especially here in Berlin. Finally, it was nice to see Panahi healthy and in fairly good shape and spirit, after all he had to go through. Recommended.