Persepolis Archives - The Playlist

The 50 Best Teen Movies Of All Time

Oliver Lyttelton — Tue, 15 Nov 2016 18:59:43 +0000

It seems that every year another fresh crop of filmmakers make their debut movies, and a high proportion are coming-of-age stories. A sadly low percentage, however, are any good, which is why this week brings us significant reason to rejoice: First-time filmmaker Kelly Fremon Craig brings us the adorable, sprightly “The Edge Of Seventeen.” In many ways this year’s “The Diary Of A Teenage Girl” in being both the debut of an exciting new female filmmaker and a funny, fresh, newly insightful take on the teen-movie genre, ‘Seventeen’ perhaps does not reinvent the wheel in the way that Marielle Heller‘s film did, but it’s such a bouncy picture, centered around such a tremendously relatable turn from Hailee Steinfeld, that to disparage it as a result would be a little like critiquing a puppy.

Continue reading The 50 Best Teen Movies Of All Time at The Playlist.

The 50 Best Animated Films Of The 21st Century So Far

Oliver Lyttelton — Tue, 05 Jul 2016 17:37:42 +0000

It’s sort of remarkable, the ways that animation on the big screen has changed in the past two decades or so. In the early ’90s, the game was pretty much entirely owned by Disney’s hand-drawn animated fairy tales, which were hugely successful but almost entirely seen as kids’ stuff, with the occasional Don Bluth or Ralph Bakshi effort winning some eyes but not really competing; and the beginning of an interesting scene in Japan that largely failed to crossover to mainstream audiences stateside.

Continue reading The 50 Best Animated Films Of The 21st Century So Far at The Playlist.

‘Persepolis’ Directors Marjane Satrapi & Vincent Paronnaud Line Up ‘Chicken With Plums’ With Mathieu Almaric

Kevin Jagernauth — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 19:32:00 +0000

Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud, the team behind the excellent animated film “Persepolis,” are back behind the camera, this time adapting Satrapi’s illustrated novel “Chicken with Plums.”

The team’s first effort was an adaptation of Satrapi’s milestone two-part graphic novel “Persepolis,” which we called one of the best animated films of the decade.

“Persepolis” was an imaginative account of Satrapi’s childhood in Iran during the Islamic Revolution and “Chicken With Plums” returns to Iran once again.

Continue reading ‘Persepolis’ Directors Marjane Satrapi & Vincent Paronnaud Line Up ‘Chicken With Plums’ With Mathieu Almaric at The Playlist.

The Best Animated Films Of The Decade

Rodrigo Perez — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 18:24:00 +0000

If ghettoizing was a concern with our Best Documentaries of the Decade list, you can be sure it’s an even bigger one here. With the controversy surrounding the immensely patronizing Best Animated Feature category at the Oscars (initiated in 2001), the notion of how to appraise animated films has become an issue of major debate among critics. Thanks in no small part to the astonishing critical success of Pixar, the marco polo effect of Hayao Miyazaki, and a generally widening reception to animated features from overseas.

Continue reading The Best Animated Films Of The Decade at The Playlist.

‘Gomorrah’ Foreign Oscar Snub Outrage Continues

Rodrigo Perez — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 15:04:00 +0000

We weren’t gigantic fans of Matteo Garrone’s hyperlinked Italian crime drama “Gomorrah” (though we did like it), but with all the accolades and praise it earned this year (the Grand Prix award at Cannes and an very enthusiastic endorsement from Marty Scorsese), its shortlist snub yesterday from the Oscar Foreign Picture committee cannot be viewed as anything but a major fuck up and oversight on their part.

As we noted yesterday, this is nothing new.

Continue reading ‘Gomorrah’ Foreign Oscar Snub Outrage Continues at The Playlist.

France Picks ‘The Class’ As Its Official Oscar Entry

Rodrigo Perez — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 18:34:00 +0000

France has had a banner year for films in 2008, but so much for strong films like, “A Secret,” “Tell No One,” “A Girl Cut in Two,” or Philippe Claudel’s “I’ve Loved You So Long” (one we haven’t seen yet, but one receiving stellar reviews), cause France has officially selected Laurent Cantet’s “Entre Les Murs,” (“The Class”) as its official Foreign Oscar entry for ’08.

That’s not a bad thing. We just saw “The Class,” earlier this week and we loved it.

Continue reading France Picks ‘The Class’ As Its Official Oscar Entry at The Playlist.

The Playlists’ Top 10 Movies, Music & Whatnot Of The Year 2007 (Very Belated)

Rodrigo Perez — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 23:32:00 +0000

[ed. Yeah, 2007 was more than a month ago, oh well, we operate on our own clock…]

In general, or as we’ve become more, *cough* sage, we’ve come to find Top 10s very arbitrary and in a way, superficial. Don’t you think the qualification of art is rather shallow?

This is a bit of a familiar rant to some, but art isn’t made within the constraints of a 12-month vacuum. Release dates are arbitrary, random and or monetarily premeditated; all of which have nothing to with ranking them numerically.

Continue reading The Playlists’ Top 10 Movies, Music & Whatnot Of The Year 2007 (Very Belated) at The Playlist.

‘Persepolis’ And ‘Four Months, Three Weeks, Two Days’ Snubbed By Foreign Oscars

Rodrigo Perez — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 05:30:00 +0000

Nine films are competing for Oscar contention in the Best Foreign Film category this year.

63 films were submitted and inexplicably, two favored front-runners “Persepolis” and the 2007 Cannes Fest Palme d’Or winner “4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days,” were completely absent.

We call total bullshit. “Persepolis” was one of our favorite films of the year (top 2007 list, tbd). And ‘4 Months’ is supposed to be incredible (hint, hint, Ms. Grace Brodie Cruz).

Continue reading ‘Persepolis’ And ‘Four Months, Three Weeks, Two Days’ Snubbed By Foreign Oscars at The Playlist.

Random: Rolling Stones, Rogery Avary, Juice Crew Film Not Cast Yet

Rodrigo Perez — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 23:14:00 +0000

The Playlist was out sick today (waaaaah!), here’s a smattering of semi-interesting things that happened in the last 24-48 hours.

– Martin Scorsese’s Rolling Stones live concert documentary, “Shine A Light,” will open the 2008 Berlin Film Festival on February 7. Marty and the crusty, decrepit Stones will be on hand. The film features guest performances from Jack White of the White Stripes, Christina Aguilera and Buddy Guy. [Variety]
– Remember the story about the Juice Crew film that was cast, locked and loaded and apparently ready to go?

Continue reading Random: Rolling Stones, Rogery Avary, Juice Crew Film Not Cast Yet at The Playlist.

Persepolis Soundtrack Due January 15; Features ‘Eye Of The Tiger’ Cover

Rodrigo Perez — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 18:22:00 +0000

We can say enough good thing about “Persepolis,”the animated feature film adapted from the graphic novels of Marjane Satrapi (her four graphic novels, altogether have sold over one million copies throughout the world; together with Vincent Paronnaud, she also co-wrote and co-directed the film).

Don’t listen to us though, the film won the 2007 Cannes Festival Jury Prize and is the official French entry for “Best Foreign Film” at the 2008 Academy Awards (jumping right over the animated category; this is a big deal).

Continue reading Persepolis Soundtrack Due January 15; Features ‘Eye Of The Tiger’ Cover at The Playlist.

Capsule Reviews: Lars & The Real Girl, Michael Clayton, Southland Tales, Persepolis

Rodrigo Perez — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 16:00:00 +0000

Sometimes we see movies when we’re not writing. We hate reviews, but we feel somewhat obligated. We digress… [ed. dude, these aren’t that short]

Lars and the Real Girl (dir. Craig Gillespie. Ryan Gosling, Emily Mortimer)
This film, about a delusional young man (Ryan Gosling) who adopts an anatomically correct sex doll as a coping mechanism against his social paralysis and the family that tries to help him (Emily Mortimer, Paul Schneider), seems to be semi-polarizing to some.

Continue reading Capsule Reviews: Lars & The Real Girl, Michael Clayton, Southland Tales, Persepolis at The Playlist.

NYFF Review: ‘Persepolis’ Is Another Magical Treat

Rodrigo Perez — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 19:37:00 +0000

Persepolis (dir. Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud. Catherine Deneuve)
Could this film be a harder sell? A black and white graphic novel adaptation of young girl’s experience growing up under the fundamentalist revolution in Iran; sounds like fun for the whole family, right? But “Persepolis” needs its own “you must see” campaign to combat any pre-conceived ideas you may have about it as it’s wonderful. Charming, funny, and heartbreaking, this unique coming of age story won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival for good reason.

Continue reading NYFF Review: ‘Persepolis’ Is Another Magical Treat at The Playlist.