The name Persepolis is that of the ancient capital of the Persian Empire, born in the 6th century B.C. and then destroyed by Alexander the Great in 330 A.D. However, the film Persepolis has nothing to do with any of that. But before you roll your eyes disappointingly back in your head and have thoughts of playing dead, wake up and experience an absolute gem of a film you will not soon forget.

Persepolis is based on Marjene Satrapi’s highly illustrated autobiography of growing up in Iran during the 1970's and 80's. By the age of 9 the Shah dictatorship that controlled Iran for years had finally come to an end, bringing much hope to the Iranian people for their freedom. The only thing worse than what they had under the Shah was what came after the Shah--the Islamic Republic of Iran and life under the oppressive rule of religious zealots. Marjane, better known to her friends and family as Marji (Chiara Mastroianni), was raised in a progressive family with liberal intellectuals for parents (Catherine Deneuve and Simon Abkarian) and with an outspoken and determined Grandmother (Danielle Darrieux) who loved Iran for what it once was and now detests it for what it has become.

Marji grew up idolizing Bruce Lee. She wore Adidas sneakers and loved American rock 'n roll; she was a precocious little girl who found it impossible to keep her mouth shut about the injustices of the world she lived in. This frightened her family because speaking out in a society that forbids such action ends up getting you put away or killed. So Marji's family decides to send her to school in Vienna and at the age of 14 she travels alone, away from her family and home to embark on a new adventure. Vienna does not come easy for Marji between the loneliness she feels and the bigotry she faces toward Middle Easterners in Europe. But she settles in, makes friends and falls in love with a boy who will eventually break her heart for the very first time. Ultimately, she returns home to her family and struggles to make it work there after being gone for so long. It is hard, though, trying to adapt back to Iran after living the free life of Europe. By the time she’s 24, she moves to Paris where she still resides to this day.

Persepolis is her personal story and what an amazing and wondrous tale it is. The animated film is done old school, made in black and white with brief splashes of color throughout. The color of the film is very much a symbol of the world Marji lives in--black and white with lots of grey areas in between. It is starkly different from any other animated film being made right now, especially by Hollywood’s 400-pound gorilla, Pixar. Where Pixar seems to be pulling out all the technical stops regarding the creation of animation nowadays, Persepolis feels ripped straight out of an old-fashioned, newsprint comic book and splashed on the big screen.

In addition to the wonderful animation are the voices that bring these characters to life. The film is mostly told in French with English subtitles, which adds wonderfully to the story, via the voices of Catherine Deneuve, Danielle Darrieux and Chiara Mastroianni. It is a real treat hearing side-by-side Deneuve and her real-life daughter Chiara (a love-child from her affair with the late, great Marcello Mastroianni's). The other amazing character and vocal performance is that of the Grandmother (Darrieux). She’s simply terrific.

Persepolis is my favorite animated film of the year and has recently been nominated for an Academy Award. Regrettably, it will probably lose out by a rat's tail to Ratatouille and that will be a shame.

- David Malsch