For someone like me, who just wants a good story - this movie being one made for film connoiseurs who want to explore the philosophy and meaning of cinema - is not good for me.
It was good half-way through until the fourth wall is broken by the child actor, and from thereon, the viewer is led to view the movie with the fourth wall broken, but the way story continues in a very let's say 'organic' fashion maintains the myth that the fourth wall is not broken after all.
But if one were to keep the fourth wall lens, then it makes the viewer voyeuristic who chooses to stay with the child actor even after she wants to escape being filmed - even as the film crew chases down the actor from the set to her home.
It's surely a clever piece of work and one made for the history books - but it fails as an entertainment piece for me. I generally do not take well to content that is made for the creator's own personal enjoyment. There has to be something in it for the viewer too.
I found the cleverness interesting, but the execution a bit amateurish. The child actor would walk consciously while looking at the camera - betraying the fact that the fourth wall breakdown was scripted and executed not much to perfection. Alas, I am able to say this only because I got to see Abbas Kiarostami's films before I started with Panahi's library. Abbas does it so so well that Panahi's efforts in this movie pales as an amateurish metoo copy.
It was good half-way through until the fourth wall is broken by the child actor, and from thereon, the viewer is led to view the movie with the fourth wall broken, but the way story continues in a very let's say 'organic' fashion maintains the myth that the fourth wall is not broken after all.
But if one were to keep the fourth wall lens, then it makes the viewer voyeuristic who chooses to stay with the child actor even after she wants to escape being filmed - even as the film crew chases down the actor from the set to her home.
It's surely a clever piece of work and one made for the history books - but it fails as an entertainment piece for me. I generally do not take well to content that is made for the creator's own personal enjoyment. There has to be something in it for the viewer too.
I found the cleverness interesting, but the execution a bit amateurish. The child actor would walk consciously while looking at the camera - betraying the fact that the fourth wall breakdown was scripted and executed not much to perfection. Alas, I am able to say this only because I got to see Abbas Kiarostami's films before I started with Panahi's library. Abbas does it so so well that Panahi's efforts in this movie pales as an amateurish metoo copy.