No Bears

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Helen Panahi is a true humanist and his movies although local are universal. No Bears is a masterpiece through which he explores the repression and entrapment of people and a society in all its forms — political, traditional, superstition, geographical, emotional. And he delivers them with sophistication yet simplicity. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/24/23 Full Review Al and Jane F Overlong and overcomplicated. The 'film within a film' concept starts off as interesting but ends up creating confusion within confusion. Having read many favourable reviews I so wanted to enjoy the film but found myself so wanting it to end. Not that it does, in a conventional sense; the film simply stops, with no obvious resolution. No Bears may offer insights into contemporary Iran but it went over this viewer's head. The relatively modest running time actually felt neverending. Give me an epic like Citizen Kane or Seven Samurai any day. Rated 1/5 Stars •  Rated 1 out of 5 stars 12/14/24 Full Review Timur B I don't know. Better than bad but not enough of impact Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 11/04/23 Full Review Jason R Unsurprisingly, this isn't one I've heard of - such entries tend to be either surprisingly good or absolutely up themselves with the critics are just showing off they've heard of them. And, unfortunately, the fact that the director of this is now in jail suggests the latter - but here's hoping, eh?!? Well - "complex metafiction" doesn't really begin to describe what we've got here. In real life, Jafar Panahi is a director who is banned from making films and leaving the country. And, in this film, he plays a director who is banned from making films and leaving the country - and he's making a film featuring two actors who are planning on leaving the country. Except that, as the film progresses, it turns out that it's more of a documentary because they really are planning to leave the country. Hilarity ensues! Well, no - not really. I'd have to say I found the whole thing very confusing - partly due to the uber-meta nature of it all and also due to the very alien existence of all involved, particularly in the scenes shot in the village of Jaban, where Jafar goes to (spectacularly unsuccessfully) lay low from the authorities. I'm not sure whether it's Jafar's acting ability or inability that comes to the fore here but he also seems thoroughly confused by the place - I suspect it's the latter, but I'm happy to give him the benefit of the doubt. Considering the rest of the cast, I've absolutely no idea whether they are actors, film crew or complete amateurs - let's just say the performances are "natural" (they certainly don't feel out of place in the overall confusion). Surprisingly, given the overall confusion involved, there are actually no bears involved, but it is an interesting title, because the threat of bears is used to scare people away from various areas when there have never been any bears - but there are actually many worse things than bears which people just have to accept or ignore, until they are no longer able to do so. It does, to some extent, manage to reach a conclusion but I'd struggle to say I found it, or any of the film, particularly satisfactory - yes, it's a very worthy entry and Jafar has to be commended for his dedication to the craft, but for me that doesn't make it a great film (although I accept it didn't do me any harm to be educated in various areas). It will be interesting to see whether I fare any better with the next Iranian film on the list, which continues the confusingly meta theme because it's directed by Jafar's son (who is merely in exile) and is about a family's trip to the border, attempting to leave the country... At the time of writing, this film is available to stream on The Criterion Channel (I swear each new film brings up a new streaming subscription service) and to rent in all the usual locations, but I really don't think I can wholeheartedly recommend it. Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 09/15/23 Full Review Jon P "This movie is a political statement, and not an emotional experience with any thought or feeling invested in it. " Yup--the reviewer who said that got it right. I can only imagine there's been a campaign to promote the movie as a show of support for the director. There's just not much to grab your interest here on a human level. Even the most basic elements of the plot don't seem driven by understandable human motives (e.g., why the filmmaker is in the village in the first place), and the film doesn't even play with multiple possibilities to answer the question. Other plot elements feel forced and incoherent (something related to dust and smugglers). Ultimately feels empty. Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 05/05/23 Full Review Alan K A great movie with layers and layers of storylines, truths and fictions. Remarkable, all of this "impromptu" moviemaking is beautifully filmed. Scene after scene is perfectly shot and beautifully framed. Surprisingly, it recalls Ozu, the Japanese master of composing shot after shot. Audacious politically, cinematically and emotionally, it is truly exceptional. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 05/01/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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