Offside is comic and exuberant, bold and resilient.
Comment
09/28/06
Offside (2006)
95 %
Reviews Counted: 77 Fresh: 73 Rotten:4 Average Rating: 7.9/10
Consensus:
A spirited film that explores gender politics with comedy, intelligence, and a variety of interesting characters.
Rated: PG
Runtime: 1 hr 39 mins
Theatrical Release: 09-06-2006
Synopsis: Many Iranian girls love soccer as much as their countrymen and sport fans all over the world but, they are prevented by law from attending live soccer matches in their country. Inspired by the day when his own daughter was refused entry to a soccer stadium in Iran, Jafar Panahi's OFFSIDE follows... [More]
Genre: Foreign Films
Starring: Ida Sadeghi, Mohammad Kheyrabadi, Shayesteh Irani, Safar Samandar, Sima Mobarak Shahi
Reviews
A quietly intelligent and humorous alternative look at football, pop culture and the position of women.
09/16/06
Top Critic
The amateur ensemble cast and superb satire make this one of the best football films going.
09/16/06
Top Critic
A plea for cultural evolution that doesn't point fingers, instead only hoping that the next generations will wake up and take the sensible steps towards the future.
09/13/07
A phenomenal work... the sort of satire where reality is its own punchline.
09/11/07
A protest film that disarms the opposition with a feather, not a cudgel...
09/07/07
If you like to see an inspirational sports film, with an amusing spin on the genre, then Offside is well worth the watch.
09/04/07
From the Western perspective, the feisty protagonists' predicament might seem silly, until it gradually sinks in that this treatment is business as usual in a backward land that seems to have gotten stuck in the Middle Ages. Alley Oop lives!
08/29/07
Jafar Panahi's film is disarming because it presents a mostly good natured, at times humorous, approach to issues that are extremely serious.
08/28/07
A film of masks . . . Droll comedy and wry ironies artfully disguise Panahi's poignant questioning of national pride, governing the public good, and even the sadness mixed in with past victories.
07/18/07
The rare Iranian film that is not only thoughtful and thought-provoking but also a lot of fun.
06/15/07
Its ruminations on secular Iranian nationalism are effectively couched within the characters, and the film, which won the Berlin Film Festival’s Silver Bear but is banned in Iran, has a refreshing slyness to it, as if it’s getting away with something too.
06/08/07
Although the game is not seen, it provides a kinetic, real-time, documentary-like backdrop for a story structured like a game itself, albeit one where neither compassion nor logic apply, and at which everyone loses.
06/07/07
It’s not exactly exciting material, but Panahi’s gentle humor and sense of realism keep it from becoming dull.
06/01/07
If you're seeking a movie that entertains while introducing you to uniquely different ways of life, Offside scores.
05/25/07
Offside is a slow slog through bloated scenes with little happening. Framed and shot like a crude documentary, it proceeds in long, clunky takes, as if an editor couldn't be bothered.
05/18/07
Related Forums
(2007 USA release)-Jafar Panahi's OFFSIDE set to play in NYC & LA this Friday (3/23)!
by: REEL_REVIEWER 2/10
by: REEL_REVIEWER 2/10
(2007 USA release)-Jafar Panahi's OFFSIDE set to play in NYC & LA this Friday (3/23)!
by: REEL_REVIEWER 2/10
by: REEL_REVIEWER 2/10
(2007 USA release)-Jafar Panahi's OFFSIDE set to play in NYC & LA this Friday (3/23)!
by: REEL_REVIEWER 2/10
by: REEL_REVIEWER 2/10
(2007 USA release)-Jafar Panahi's OFFSIDE set to play in NYC & LA this Friday (3/23)!
by: REEL_REVIEWER 2/10
by: REEL_REVIEWER 2/10
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