Panasi's third work during the auction ban is also the most entertaining and popular one to date, and it successfully won the 2015 Berlin Golden Bear Award. Maybe the director finally figured out and broke the psychological barrier, just like the mysterious woman who opened the curtains in "The Closing", he no longer adopts the confined space narrative strategy of the previous two films, but boldly walks to the streets to meet the masses for this film The pseudo-documentary adds an unexpected comedy color. Although this idea comes from "Ten Melody of Life" by another Iranian film master, Abbas, this pseudo-documentary is even better in expanding its perspective and plot structure. In particular, the introduction of the two characters, the pirated disc dealer and the little niece, made the film’s boundary between reality and reality more blurred, and also made the film more interesting. Although most of the passengers' dialogues have traces of rehearsal in advance, in such a special country, it is commendable to hear such frank and straightforward voices of the people, because the director is likely to be charged with terrible charges.
I most admire the director who was able to maintain such an optimistic and open-minded attitude even after being banned from filming by the Iranian government. He tried every means to continue his film creation and completed a masterpiece that reflects today’s Iranian society at the lowest cost, covering many sensitivities. The enlightening topics: death penalty, poverty, religion, women, law, etc., are simply peeking into a condensed Iranian society through a humble taxi. Rather than saying that the film's winning of the Berlin Golden Bear is a political factor, it is more a tribute to the Iranian people who are pursuing freedom. When I saw the beautiful lawyer presenting flowers to the camera in the film, tears almost couldn't help but burst out. In this world, there is really nothing more moving than the people who have fun in suffering.
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