This Is Not a Film

2 Reception

For the 2010 Mexican science ction lm, see This Is

Not a Movie.

Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives a

score of 98% based on reviews from 88 critics, with
an average rating of 8.9/10, and the sites consensus is:
Through simple means and lming, This is Not a Film
presents a vital political statement and a snapshot of life in
Iran as enemy of the state.[3] Metacritic rated it 90/100
based on 27 reviews.[4]

This Is Not a Film (Persian: - nist film In ) is

an Iranian documentary lm by Jafar Panahi and Mojtaba
Mirtahmasb.[1] It was released on 28 September 2011 in
France, distributed by Kanibal Films Distribution.[2] The
lm was smuggled from Iran to Cannes in a ash drive
hidden inside a birthday cake. It was specially screened
at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival and later at the New
York Film Festival, and others. It also took part in the
International Competition of the 27th Warsaw International Film Festival.

Sight & Sound lm magazine listed it as number eight on

its list of the best lm of 2012.[5] Calling This Is Not A
Film one of the top 10 movies of 2012, critic Ann Hornaday of The Washington Post said the lm uses Brechtian
staging, blurred lines between documentary and drama,
and an iPhone to explore the notion of physical and political boundaries, the aesthetic and technological contours
of cinema, and the enduring power of self-expression.[6]
Critic A. O. Scott of The New York Times rated This Is
Not a Film the fourth best documentary of 2012. He
called the lm a brave and witty video diary, an essay
on the struggle between political tyranny and the creative imagination.[7] Peter Debruge of Variety called the
lm a courageous act of non-violent protest.[8] Deborah
Young of The Hollywood Reporter called it an unusual
documentary that nds a creative solution to Panahis
ban on lmmaking.[9] Jacques Mandelbaum of Le Monde
wrote that the lm shows audiences Panahis courage and
dignity.[10] In December 2012, it was shortlisted as one
of 15 lms eligible for Best Documentary Feature at the
85th Academy Awards.[11]

Synopsis

Panahi is under house arrest, awaiting the result of his

appeal of a six-year prison sentence and twenty-year ban
on lm-making, leaving the country or giving media interviews for propaganda against the regime. Bored and
desperate that this verdict may mean his artistic death,
he starts documenting his life. He begins lming himself
in his apartment, then calls his friend and collaborator,
Mirtahmasb, who arrives at the apartment and takes over
the camera. Banned from lm making and determined
to save at least some of his artistic visions, Panahi reads
some of the scenario from the movie he was planning to
make. Upon hearing reworks marking the ancient Iranian festival Chaharshanbe Suri that precedes the Persian
new year, Nouruz, and other suspicious noises resembling
gunshots, he gets scared and quickly stops this project. He
turns on the TV to hear the news. We see news about the
tsunami in Japan and later it is announced that Irans president has banned any reworks and bonres that used to
mark Chaharshanbe Suri.

3 References
[1] Smith, Ian Hayden (2012). International Film Guide
2012. p. 148. ISBN 978-1908215017.

After Mr. Mirtahmasbs departure, Panahi takes his

friends camera and starts chatting with the boy who collects the litter in the apartment block since one of his relatives was not able to come that day, Panahi asks him
questions about his life and plans for the future. This conversation takes places in the claustrophobic scenery of a
lift, as the boy goes down from oor to oor and every so
often gets out of the lift to do his job. The movie ends
with the boy putting the trash can out on the street, as revelers throw gasoline on a re. While Panahi watches and
shoots video from the ramp leading down to his buildings
underground garage (as far, it seems, as he dare go), the
boy jumps over the re taking part in the celebration.

[2] Ceci n'est pas un lm Allocine index.

September.(French)

Retrieved 30

[3] This Is Not a Film (2012)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved

July 22, 2014.
[4] This Is Not a Film. Metacritic. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
[5] Lodge, Guy (December 2, 2012). "'The Master' named
2012s best in Sight & Sound critics poll. HitFix. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
[6] Hornaday, Ann (December 7, 2012). Ann Hornadays
ten best lms of 2012. The Washington Post. Retrieved
December 14, 2012.

[7] Scott, A. O. (December 14, 2012). 25 Favorites From

A Year When 10 Aren't Enough. The New York Times.
Retrieved December 14, 2012.
[8] Debruge, Peter (May 20, 2011). Review: 'This Is Not a
Film'". Variety. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
[9] Young, Deborah (May 20, 2011). This Is Not a Film:
Cannes Review. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July
22, 2014.
[10] Mandelbaum, Jacques (September 27, 2011). ""Ceci n'est
pas un lm : ceci n'est pas un cinaste iranien menac".
Le Monde. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
[11] 15 Documentary Features Advance In 2012 Oscar
Race. Oscars.org. 2012-12-22. Retrieved 2012-12-25.

External links
This Is Not a Film at the Internet Movie Database
This Is Not a Film at Rotten Tomatoes
This Is Not a Film at Metacritic

EXTERNAL LINKS

Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

5.1

Text

This Is Not a Film Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/This_Is_Not_a_Film?oldid=714458737 Contributors: Gabbe, Gilgamesh~enwiki, Erik, Koavf, Froth, Mihai Capot, Yodin, Lugnuts, Peppage, Krevans, Nevit, Shawn in Montreal, NinjaRobotPirate,
MarmadukePercy, Haghshenas m a, Addbot, Smetanahue, AnomieBOT, LilHelpa, Film Fan, Juybari, Ktlynch, ZroBot, SporkBot, Ivonna
Nowicka, Deuxtroy, Eviltypewriter, Deoliveirafan, Khazar2, JulsZuz, Art130385, Mslifkin, Flynst4r and Anonymous: 20

5.2

Images

File:Edit-clear.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f2/Edit-clear.svg License: Public domain Contributors: The

Tango! Desktop Project. Original artist:
The people from the Tango! project. And according to the meta-data in the le, specically: Andreas Nilsson, and Jakub Steiner (although
minimally).

5.3

Content license

Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0