Reviewed by Doug Cooper
Stars Mahtab Keramati, Golshifteh Farahani, Mahnaz Afshar,
Niki Karimi, Juliette Binoche
Written by Mohammed Rahmanian, based
on the 12th century poem by Nezami
Certification UK PG
Runtime 92 minutes
Directed by Abbas Kiarostami
If 92 minutes of close-ups of nothing but women watching a dramatic screen event is of interest to you then run - don't walk - to the BFI to catch this cinematic experiment. Some will deem it eclectically inspired; others will accuse it of self-indulgent posturing. This reviewer shares the latter opinion.
Depicted in Farsi with English subtitles, Shirin is set in a cinema where nothing is shown but the expressions of the female audience - Juliette Binoche being one of them - as they watch the re-enactment of a 12th century Persian poem. We hear the dialogue and sounds of the reconstruction but are not privy to seeing it. Only the womens' faces give an inkling as to the dramatics that are on display. One's imagination must be pliable enough if you really want to appreciate the director's intentions. The actresses' expressions give us a good insight into what is going on but after a half hour or so the originality of the concept quickly palls. Though some of them do indeed have pretty faces this unfortunately is not enough to sustain one's interest. I was bored senseless after a while and at least three critics walked out of the screening I attended before the 45-minute mark.
Oh well, never mind. Give it a go if you're exceedingly patient and have an interest in Persian drama. If not, it will rapidly wear you out. A 20 minute short would have sufficed for this radical approach.
• Shirin at IMDb