Shirin

The human face has fascinated artists and filmmakers for centuries. It has inspired some of the most memorable moments in movie history, from the closing scenes of City Lights and The Long Good Friday, while Dreyer, Warhol and Douglas Gordon have dedicated entire projects to the beauty and emotions of a great performer’s visage. Abbas Kiarostami’s latest experiment consists entirely of faces, focusing on individual women’s responses to a film screening dramatising a Persian folk tale. In other words, he invites you to attend a cinema and watch a cinema audience. At times poetic, hypnotic and strangely dramatic, Kiarostami understands the equal importance of sound, so while the story may prove difficult for an outsider to follow, the melodramatic music, intonations and sound effects are universal. Yes, the film outstays its welcome and can be repetitive, but there is no denying Kiarostami’s audacity and assurance: he remains one of the true modern innovators. [Michael Gillespie]