Persepolis review 2

John Richardson
English 1106
Dan Lawson
Friday February 20, 2009

Graphic novels have become a trend that is beginning to become popular in the United States, and all over the world. The books have also become a hot topic to be transformed into films. Examples of graphic novel blockbusters are: Spider-Man 1, 2, and 3. Batman; The Dark Night, and the Incredible Hulk are all examples of hit movies that were based off of graphic novels. Another graphic novel, which just recently was turned into a movie, was Persepolis. Persepolis is the story of Marjane Satrapi, a young woman who grew up in Iran and lived through a revolution, oppression, and a period of homelessness. Satrapi grew up in a family that taught her the sky was the limit for all her dreams and hopes. She aspired to become a prophet, a rocker, and much more but the government was putting her down at every turn. The government was reverting back to a traditional stance. Western ideas were frowned upon, as well as women’s free rights to display their personality. Marji grew up protesting all that Iran was turning into, and she had many western ideas. For this reason, her parents sent her to France where she could more easily express her free western ideas, and grow up away from a war. She went through a very difficult transition; she bounced from house to house, and had many groups of friends. She realized that she did not like who she was becoming, and came back to Iran many years later to be with her family.
I personally thought it was a great film. I was a huge fan of the graphic novel, and I feel other fans will feel the same way about the book! The storyline follows the book completely, and there are not many flaws between the two. The only thing I did not like in the movie was how they briefly touched upon some key points in the book. Marji has a strong relationship with her Uncle. In the book, the relationship is a significant part of the plot, but in the film the relationship is not a focal point at all. I feel even though the film is completely animated, and there are no people whatsoever, I feel it still can convey a strong message. There is no loss of real life situations at all and you feel involved in the story even though it is just a cartoon. Beverly Burning of Culturevulture.net feels the same way by saying:
“The animation is exquisitely evocative, but it is Satrapi’s story itself, and her point of view, that captivates us. Every stage of her life is treated with a clear-headed view of someone who has seen so much, and yet comes out the other end without the anger and need for revenge or bitterness that taints other memoirs.”
I agree with her completely because I felt the same way after watching the films, and I can relate to her feelings completely. Burning is insisting that there is no loss of emotion even though people may think it is difficult to relate to a cartoon, it is not.
Another renowned comic artist is now having his comics turned into movies, and his name is William Eisner. His most recent book to film hit is the Christmas spirit, but he has made his name off of his work as a comic book writer. He said in his book that; “Comic book writers have developed their craft in an interplay of words, and images. I believe, achieved a successful cross breading of illustration and prose.” His point is that comic artists have found a way to relay messages in different ways other than just words on a page. I feel this pertains to Persepolis because it is a prime example of words and drawn images becoming one piece. After reading the works of Eisner, and seeing all of Satrapi’s work, I feel that comics and graphic novels are going to become much more popular, and also be turned into many more movies. Persepolis is a phenomenal film, and I enjoyed watching it. It was captivating, exciting, and interesting, and I feel it will catch all viewers’ eyes, and enlighten them on not only the situation that happened in Iran, as well as the story of a girl who grew into a woman through many difficult situations.