***½/**** Image A Sound A Extras A
starring Sima Mobarak Shahi, Safar Samandar, Shayesteh Irani, M. Kheyrabadi
screenplay by Jafar Panahi and Shadmehr Rastin
directed by Jafar Panahi
by Travis Mackenzie Hoover Offside finds Jafar Panahi in a light mood. At least, in a lighter mood than when he made The Circle, his previous dissertation on the depressing state of women's rights in Iran, which painted the nation as a Kafka-esque hell full of paranoia and punishment for any woman with the fatal courage to get out of line. That movie is a brilliant sucker-punch you don't easily forget, though its huis clos mentality leads one more to despair than to hope that something can be done. His latest film is the flipside to The Circle: a tribute to the resourcefulness of young women who will get their football fix any way they can while still pledging allegiance to the idea of their nationality–even when the reality is a hostile force bent on keeping them at home. It is, against all odds, funny, mischievous, and brazenly positive; and it'll send you out soaring, your faith in humanity restored under conditions you never thought possible.
This is Panahi's throwdown against one of Iran's more idiotic laws: that women, delicate creatures that they are, be "spared" the vulgar spectacle of men shouting and cursing at public sporting events. Needless to say, the less-cowed Iranian women are not about to be prevented from attending a game–especially not the one depicted in the film, the Iran vs. Bahrain World Cup qualifier, a match no self-respecting footy fan would miss for any reason on Earth. Still, Panahi fails to give us gratification immediately: instead, he has a father searching for his daughter among busloads of loud boys (or are they?) on their way to the big game. This establishes the sea of men that women–specifically, a timid newbie who's dressed as a boy–must negotiate. Jubilant love of the sport is juxtaposed with the sacrifice needed to enjoy it–and the film never loses sight of either element.
So our heroine tries to crash the gate and fails, sending her to a makeshift holding tank guarded by soldiers. There we meet some of her cagier cousins, a few of whom have done this before and one of whom had the reckless gall to do it in armed-forces drag. (And to seat herself in the military box!) These are, mostly, not shrinking-violet types, and they argue relentlessly with the country bumpkin superior officer (Safar Samandar) who can't fathom these ballsy Tehran girls. But their debate is frequently interrupted by the game itself (which Iran appears to be winning), of course, and by one of the girls' stealthy use of a bathroom break to sneak away. None of this, by the way, is played for tragedy, with the doltish officer character coming off as less evil than merely wrong and at least united with the girls in his hope for Iran's victory on the field. There is dialogue, there is opinion–to say nothing of the kid selling fireworks.
The Circle was the broad horror of ubiquitous oppression; Offside is the comedy of petty nuisances and fugitive strikes against same. It's positive in that it forwards the idea that Iranian citizens might not stand for the things its laws represent while still maintaining the nation as a source of personal identity and local pride. If the Iraq debacle has taught us anything, it's that you can't replace one country with another–you have to tap the good in what's there and let it thrive. Panahi is on the vanguard of this, clearly disgusted with the chapter and verse of his country's laws but unwilling to let it destroy the personalities–and pleasures–of the people who suffer their wrath the most. The sport abides, the sport provides sustenance, and the coming-together of sentiment around that sport seems an ideal place to begin the national rejuvenation. How ironic that this damning representation of the Iranian status quo could be the feel-good movie of the year–one that belongs on your DVD shelf yesterday.
THE DVD
Sony's DVD presentation of Offside is exemplary. The 1.85:1, 16×9-enhanced image is supremely multidimensional, crucial for a film with such hard focus; detail is sharp and the colour range is very subtle, while textural inconsistencies are obviously native to the HD source. The Dolby 5.1 audio is also full of surprises: it isn't terribly potent, yet that suits the film, and the surround cues are surprisingly well-articulated for what is clearly a low-budget effort. The only extra is a 36-minute interview with the director that's a welcome change of pace from Laurent Bouzereau mush. Panahi proves extremely intelligent and precise in discussing the motives behind and production of the film, the outrageous pressure placed on him by Iranian censorship bodies, the break with his tradition of using 35mm for practical reasons, and the issue of the real-time narrative vs. the 36-day shooting schedule. It's fascinating from beginning to end. Completing the package are trailers for Vitus, Molière, The Valet, Driving Lessons, Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles, Who Killed the Electric Car?, God Grew Tired of Us, Winged Migration, Blind Spot: Hitler's Secretary, Lagaan, and Happy Times.
92 minutes; PG; 1.85:1 (16×9-enhanced); Persian/Farsi DD 5.1; CC; English, French subtitles; DVD-9; Region One; Sony
