Frontier Blues

I saw this film at the Edinburgh Film Festival this year. I am a frequent visitor to the festival and as usual I watched my fair share of films this year. This little gem from Iran stood out above all others I saw. The film takes place in the director's hometown. An area which I was not at all familiar with. Moving along at a calm pace, it lets you take in all the little details and intricacies of the breathtaking frames and leaves you in an atmospheric wonderland. I won't say anything about plots and story lines because in a way it is unnecessary for this type of film. It's released in the UK on 30th July so go see for yourself and realise that magic and mystery still exist in cinema.

excerpt - Set in a northern province of Iran, with its racial mix of Turkmen, Persians, Kazakhs, Russians and Armenians, Frontier Blues depicts the lives of people in limbo, belonging to neither one country nor another, who seem to exist in a permanent state of transition.

The film's pace is glacial, but its gentle and humorous observations, as well as the striking landscape of its setting, are enough to sustain interest for its modest hour-and-a-half duration. If you've ever uttered the words "but nothing ever happened" when leaving the cinema, it's probably one to avoid. For all that, it shows some skillful and delicate filmmaking, and it'll be interesting to see what Jalali does next.

This is a portrait of a border province. It is not only in vast Iran that the border lands exist in a sleepy dizziness, forgotten and forlorn by government or God. I adore crossing borders on foot or by local train because of this melancholic mood that border areas around the world instil. Yet, this film shows a point of view from the locals - for whom being on the margins does not feel like a fancy adventure at all.

The people here feel stuck - and stale. There is no future to look up to, no linear time, just repetitive dailiness. However, the film undertakes to make us share into their feelings personally, and succeeds quite well! Long still scenes - almost photographs, hopeless landscape, no events (indeed, no weddings or funerals), subdued emotions and simple talk. A story is made by tiny details only.

Frontier Blues is a portrait of an Iranian border Steppes region by the Caspian Sea that has been fought over for centuries and depicted through the eyes of four village characters, each of a differing tribe - a Persian, a Kazak, a Turkman and an Armenian. Added to which is a Tehran photographer trying to capture it all on film, taxi drivers, cafe owner, factory manager etc. All have aimless lives with no real prospects. Mundane existences in a wide barren landscape littered with relics of the past. The dark humour, stoicism and pathos is abundant and the whole cinematic experience is a true joy to watch. Frontier Blues can be equally likened to other slow paced world cinema gems such as Lake Tahoe, Vodka Lemon, The Return, Historias Minimas, The Banishment, Las Acacias and the wonderful Once Upon A Time in Anatolia. So much different from standard mainstream cinema carp of today. To me they all provide to a western outsider an education and greater understanding of these peoples and places.

... but very, very slow. There was so much potential, I was very disappointed with its lack of depth or pace. I'm sure it meant to reflect the stagnation of the area in which it was made, but a workable movie needs more depth of characterisation in order to succeed. It would have benefited too from the female characters being given some real roles. Cinematography was also a little unsophisticated and could have made more of the incredible vistas available. There were, however, some nice performances, especially from the actors portraying the shopkeeper and the ambitious man. It also features what must surely be the world's most stoical donkey.