The Mirror (1997 film)

The Mirror
Directed by Jafar Panahi
Starring Mina Mohammad Khani
Cinematography Farzad Jadat
Release dates
1997
Running time
95 min.
Country Iran
Language Persian

The Mirror (Persian: آینه Ayneh) is a 1997 Iranian film directed by Jafar Panahi, about a little girl trying to find her way home from school.

Plot

Mina, a first-grader, finds her mother has failed to pick her up from school. The movie is about her endeavor to find her way home amidst the noise, confusion and chaos of Tehran. Mina is dressed in school uniform (with a head scarf), has one arm in a cast and is holding a school bag in the other. She meets a lot of people on her way and most of them try to help her while others are surprisingly apathetic to her situation. Eventually, the movie takes a turn when the girl looks into the camera for the first time, breaking the fourth wall, and someone shouts from off-screen, "Mina, don't look into the camera!" The movie is a real life capture of events thereon (or that is how it seems). Mina announces that she doesn't want to act in the movie any more and wants to go home. In the end she goes home after returning the microphone.

Meaning

In a 2006 interview, Panahi said that the film was meant to show how "reality and the imagination are intertwined, they are very similar".[1]

Cast

Accolades

Award Category Winner/Nominee Result
Locarno International Film Festival Golden Leopard Jafar Panahi Won
Istanbul International Film Festival Golden Tulip Jafar Panahi Won
Singapore International Film Festival Silver Screen Award (Best Asian Director) Jafar Panahi Won
Golden Spike Valladolid International Film Festival Jafar Panahi Nominated

References

  1. Wilson, Jake (26 September 2006). "A mirror under the veil - and inside the stadium". The Age. Retrieved 21 July 2013.

External links