No One Knows About Persian Cats (2009)

Thursday, February 07, 2019 @ 7:00 PM
Globe Cinema - 617 8th Ave SW, Calgary, AB
$12 General | $10 Members/Seniors/Students | $40 5-Pack Punch Pass | $99 Season Pass

DIRECTED BY BAHMAN GHOBADI | IRAN | 106 MINS.

Because of the visibility and popularity in the West of directors like Abbas Kiarostami, Jafar Panahi, and Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Iranian cinema appeared to many to be enjoying a remarkable renaissance in the 1990s. This was a cinema that managed to arouse considerable expressive power within the confines of the tight restrictions placed upon it by the state. However, those of us who have been playing close attention have seen our assumptions about Iranian culture routinely challenged. For many, Bahman Ghobadi’s No One Knows About Persian Cats would have been their first peek into Tehran’s underground music scene. Indie rockers Negar Shaghaghi and Ashkan Koshanejad play versions of themselves in Ghobadi’s film: recently imprisoned performers speeding around Tehran on the back of a motorbike attempting to secure travel documents and recruit other musicians for a gig in London. Some people who worked on the film had done time in prison; others subsequently would. The director and two leads were forced to leave the country after the film had been screened. Fun, joyous, and infectious though it is, No One Knows About Persian Cats is dissident art through and through.

- Written by Jason Wierzba

FOCUS: WORLD MUSICALS

With the introduction of sound to the cinematographic lexicon, the Hollywood musical very quickly became one of the preeminent public entertainments of the 1930s. Even now, when one thinks of musicals, one may well be inclined to envision the lavish spectacles of Hollywood or Bollywood. There is a general tendency to overlook the variations on the form, often uniquely characteristic of their national or cultural spheres, that continue to emerge from around the globe. Calgary Cinematheque is pleased to have the opportunity this season to expose audiences to musicals from Hong Kong, Egypt, Iran, Japan, and Indonesia. Musicals are by nature popular entertainment, public art, spectacles meant to be enjoyed by amassed spectators representing a collective body. They are inherently celebratory and communal. Musicals from around the world viewed (and heard) in public space ideally expand our concept and experience of community. Think of these films as locally-global phenomena; experiences grounded in kinship and exultation.

About Calgary Cinematheque

We are a non-profit film society dedicated to presenting significant, challenging, and essential works of cinema art in Calgary. During our season, which runs from October to April, we screen films weekly, in curated programs which situate each film in a thematic and historical context. We do this because we believe cinema is an essential form of artistic, social, and political expression. Audiences should be able to engage with a wide range of cinematic expression, not only with what is commercially viable. We believe in the power of sharing these experiences with other people in a theatrical setting and we strive to cultivate a community around that experience.  

Calgary Showtimes: No One Knows About Persian Cats (2009) >

Calgary Cinematheque >
Calgary Cinematheque Facebook >
Calgary Cinematheque Twitter >

Facebook Event >
Eventbrite Buy Tickets >