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Once Upon a Time, Cinema

1992 1h 40m Comedy List
Tomatometer 3 Reviews 81% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
In this meditation on the history of cinema, contemporary scenes blend with clips from the silent era. A cinematographer (Mehdi Hashemi) consults with the shah of Iran (Ezzatollah Entezami) in an attempt to convince him that cinema is beautiful. Movies are censored, however: the shah bans them himself. But when the shah falls in love with a beautiful silent-film actress (Fatemah Motamed-Aria), he forfeits the throne and crosses into the realm of the movie screen to be with his love.

Critics Reviews

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James Berardinelli ReelViews The product of Iranian director Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Once Upon a Time, Cinema, is an indulgence and a Valentine to movies. Rated: 3/4 Dec 28, 2018 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: 3/5 Jul 19, 2005 Full Review Brian Webster Apollo Guide Rated: 73/100 Jan 1, 2000 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Audience Member i love thsi movie... and i have watched it many times since iwas a child. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/13/23 Full Review Audience Member Smart, somewhat revolutionary Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/16/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Once Upon a Time, Cinema

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Movie Info

Synopsis In this meditation on the history of cinema, contemporary scenes blend with clips from the silent era. A cinematographer (Mehdi Hashemi) consults with the shah of Iran (Ezzatollah Entezami) in an attempt to convince him that cinema is beautiful. Movies are censored, however: the shah bans them himself. But when the shah falls in love with a beautiful silent-film actress (Fatemah Motamed-Aria), he forfeits the throne and crosses into the realm of the movie screen to be with his love.
Director
Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Producer
Masud Jafari Jozani, Mohammad Mehdi Dadgu
Screenwriter
Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Genre
Comedy
Original Language
Persian
Runtime
1h 40m