Taxi Téhéran

This year's installment in delightfully subversive political guerrilla filming is brought to us by Jafar Panahi and his film, "Taxi". Mr. Panahi is an Iranian filmmaker who ran afoul of his government's strict rules concerning suitable filming subjects. As a result, he spent time in prison and under house arrest. Not to be daunted, he continued making films that skirted the government's definition. "Taxi" is his third such film and like the other two, had to be smuggled out of the country to be seen.

Panahi assumes the guise of a taxi driver (apparently a nod to fellow Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami's film, "Ten") and drives around a city, much like any other city, picking up various passengers throughout the day. There are moments of hilarity as Pahani deals with one situation after another, but underneath it all is a telling story of what life is like in Iran today, with particular attention to issues of censorship, state sanctioned brutality, women's rights, and of course, how this affects the arts and culture. It makes light of life in Iran and pokes fun at the powers that be, all the while recognizing that their actions have serious ramifications.

It is for the most part an engaging film, but given that it all takes place in a taxi and as such, is almost completely driven by dialog, it can drag a little. Still, for what it is, a piece of political theater, it is really excellent. If you get a chance to see it, I'd recommend it if for no other reason than to get a small feel for a country we, in the Western world, get to see so little of.

This is one of the unique film, and the filmmaking I have seen. It is a docudrama, starred and directed by Jafar Panahi. It is my first film of his and I'm very impressed. I also learnt he was banned from making movies and to leave the country since last 5 years. But he took all the legal route possible to keep making them, and this movie is the result of it. He had made a couple of them before this, but with this he came outdoors to capture the streets of the Iranian capital.

This movie entirely set in a taxi, well, the cameras never leaves the car, but car roams around the city, Tehran. A real time movie that runs for nearly 80 minutes. There's no open or the end credits other than the title texts and some statements. The story was very interesting, that I don't know whether it was scripted or factual, but the planning was so good to shoot it in a low profile.

All the actors except the director were non pros. That definitely needs a loud applaud, because the outcome tells the quality of their exhibition. It gives a glimpse of the life as a taxi driver who sees the city through his eyes and meets the people. Some scenes were extremely funny, some were dark humours and some were thoughtful. Each time when a new character enters the frame, a new topic has brought with them and discussed, that mean the movie is totally engaging with a variety that keeps you hooked till the final.

"We already have the world record of hangings after China."

I think the end was very smart, because of that kind of conclusion and no post-production credits, I thought that's how the archives were smuggled out of the country and made it ready. But no one knows the truth how it all has been done, otherwise Jafar Panahi would have landed in a trouble. A rare gem and one of the best of 2015 that you must try it if you are a film fanatic.

Initially, I mean before decide to watch it, I was not sure it will reach my expectations. When I sat for it, the experience was different and now I am extremely happy for giving it a try. Opinion might vary about the film, but the effort must be appreciated. Especially in a circumstance where the filmmaker has everything against him, I meant legally, but came strong in what he believes is his passion. That is inspiring and also for a risk he has taken really paid off.

It won a few Internation Filmfare awards and that's how I actually came to know about this. I'm positive this film won't disappoint you as well, well, if you are not looking for twists and turns like an intelligent or a big budget film. As I said, I could have not asked a better than this, a very simple yet entertaining movie.

8/10

Acclaimed Iranian director Jafar Panahi drives a cab through the streets of Teheran. The changing passengers speak out openly what is on their mind. A female teacher and a young man discuss death penalty, a bootlegger offers the new season of "The Walking Dead" and some Woody Allen movies, two old women want to transport their goldfish in a glass bowl to a holy place, a young woman wants to transport her much older husband who has been injured in an accident, and a cheeky little girl explains the rules of Iranian filmmaking and her entitlement to a frappuccino.

A highly emotionally satisfying miniature. On the surface it feels small and funny, but underneath it is seething in anger and defiance at the Iranian government. One of the stuff that makes the movie so unusual is that it is so difficult to pinpoint whether everything is planned or caught in the spur of the moment. Especially the final scene which kept my mind wondering. I really like this a lot. More so when I found out about the sad state of affairs for Jafar Panahi. He is actually banned from making movies for 20 years because he was deemed to have crossed the "sordid realism" line drawn by the Iranian government. How he subtly pokes fun at the authorities is hilarious and yet warm. The whole 80+ min film feels like a window into another world, a world not unlike ours, especially when Eric Khoo's most recent film is deemed "unscreenable". One of the most important films I have seen this year. Now I feel like hunting down The White Balloon, Closed Curtains and This Is Not a Film.

Going into a screening of this film, there are a couple of things an audience should know. In 2010 Jafar Panahi, was arrested for making a film against the Iranian regime. Since then he has not been allowed to make films, leave the country or participate in interviews. Taxi, however, is his third film since the ban, and even though it's filmed entirely within the confined space of a taxi, it shows us the streets of Tehran. We're out in the open, right under the nose of the Iranian government.

Read More Here (https://filmcurious.wordpress.com/2015/05/02/review-taxi- 2015/#more-145)

Jafar Panahi is an Iranian filmmaker who has made some very interesting films, such as "The Mirror". However, despite his films seeming to be very slight, enjoyable and rather apolitical, he's gotten into trouble with his government. He was arrested back in 2010 and no specific charges were forthcoming for some time. In the meantime, filmmakers from all over the world pressed for his release. Eventually he was released but the government also said that he "was making a film against the regime and it was about the events that followed the [2009] election" and that was why he was detained. Because of these vague charges, Panahi has been banned from filmmaking for 20 years. But, Panahi has continued to fight this and made "This Is Not a Film" (2011) and "Taxi" (2015) while under this ban. These projects were smuggled out of Iran and have been shown in the West...and the exact consequences to Panahi are uncertain.

As far as his latest film, Taxi, is concerned it's an extremely strange project--so strange I really cannot rate it. The film is completely untraditional and I've never seen anything like it. The film looks like a documentary with no real actors, though the story is in fact a story and the folks participating are not unsuspecting members of the public. In the film, Panahi plays himself and he's inexplicably driving a taxi and using a dashcam to record his passengers. The recordings are supposedly meant to illustrate some of the societal themes Iranians are struggling with and they supposedly talk without realizing they are being filmed. Among the many themes you learn about is an underground cottage industry which illegally disseminates banned Western films, how the incredibly strict Sharia Law is impacting society negatively as well as the overall climate of suspicion and secrecy. It's all incredibly strange and looks a lot like a reality television show...albeit one set in Iran.

So did I love the film? No...not really. It is very interesting and thought-provoking but it also lacks the sort of narrative or style of a film. There are no real opening or closing credits and it looks more like raw footage of Panahi and his passengers was simply smuggled out of the country. Because of this, you cannot rightfully give the film a score such as an A, B or C...it's more a piece of art that also has the ability to place the viewer into the cab along with these people to glean little snippets of their lives and their concerns. Intriguing and out this week on Netflix.