Frontier Blues (2009) User Reviews

gentle

[thisissubtitledmovies · 6/10 · 3 December 2010]

excerpt - Set in a northern province of Iran, with its racial mix of Turkmen, Persians, Kazakhs, Russians and Armenians, Frontier Blues depicts the lives of people in limbo, belonging to neither one country nor another, who seem to exist in a permanent state of transition.

The film's pace is glacial, but its gentle and humorous observations, as well as the striking landscape of its setting, are enough to sustain interest for its modest hour-and-a-half duration. If you've ever uttered the words "but nothing ever happened" when leaving the cinema, it's probably one to avoid. For all that, it shows some skillful and delicate filmmaking, and it'll be interesting to see what Jalali does next.

Warm and bluesy

[oOgiandujaOo_and_Eddy_Merckx · 7/10 · 2 September 2010]

There is a debate raging in various august film organs at the moment about the merits/demerits of "slow cinema". Whatever your standpoint on the matter is, you should know that this is an example of the cycle. For myself, I watch Bergman and often hope that he will hold shots longer! Blues is the right word for what we've got here, but the men of the cast (the characters are almost entirely men) aren't utterly high and dry, and there's a goodly amount of drollery to be had. It's very important to recognise that each of the characters the films follows has someone that loves them (even if it's not the love they think they want), despite their reservoirs of ennui.

There is prettiness to be had on the northern frontiers of Iran, the quality of light on the steppes, the Caspian sea. But these characters aren't there on holiday, and they are pretty much stuck in the Doldrums. In particular I think you keenly feel the lack of female presence in the movie, all the women seem to have had the sense to absent themselves from the congenital exile. Hassan is the funniest character, he has pebble glasses and a slack jaw, his hobby is collecting car number plates from different regions in Iran, and he claims to own several eucalyptus plantations. He pines for the mother he has only ever known from a photo, a beautiful lady who ran away to Paris when he was young. His sentimental connection with her is a tape of Françoise Hardy's "Tous les garçons et les filles"; which reminded me of my schooldays, when my French teacher for a year, a real Titania who kept us all behaving through the spell of her fey grace alone, used to play us her songs under some doubtlessly invented educational pretext.

The stories aren't intersecting, and what we see is more a slice of life than traditional narrative. The director is careful to be as honest in his depictions as possible, and warns of the falsity of the Neorealist approach via a story of an ethnographic photographer from Tehran.

A funny and deeply humanistic movie, as an oblique coda, I suggest that you bring a long a sachet of dried apricots to make an experience of it if this plays near you.

a province stuck and stale

[gospodinBezkrai · 6/10 · 13 March 2010]

This is a portrait of a border province. It is not only in vast Iran that the border lands exist in a sleepy dizziness, forgotten and forlorn by government or God. I adore crossing borders on foot or by local train because of this melancholic mood that border areas around the world instil. Yet, this film shows a point of view from the locals - for whom being on the margins does not feel like a fancy adventure at all.

The people here feel stuck - and stale. There is no future to look up to, no linear time, just repetitive dailiness. However, the film undertakes to make us share into their feelings personally, and succeeds quite well! Long still scenes - almost photographs, hopeless landscape, no events (indeed, no weddings or funerals), subdued emotions and simple talk. A story is made by tiny details only.

A Certain Charm ...

[bibimcbibi · 3/10 · 16 December 2010]

... but very, very slow. There was so much potential, I was very disappointed with its lack of depth or pace. I'm sure it meant to reflect the stagnation of the area in which it was made, but a workable movie needs more depth of characterisation in order to succeed. It would have benefited too from the female characters being given some real roles. Cinematography was also a little unsophisticated and could have made more of the incredible vistas available. There were, however, some nice performances, especially from the actors portraying the shopkeeper and the ambitious man. It also features what must surely be the world's most stoical donkey.

plain, simple and honest

[cheetat · 8/10 · 3 December 2009]

In remote Gorgan (Iran's northern border with Turkmenistan), the film tells us the story of 4 men, of whom, 3 have dreams of girls/women/marriage/reunion. It portrays a society where women fled frequently from their families for richer men, and where men feel they are the authority of their families and they are responsible for the younger ones, e.g. letting the donkey go. Here, men cling on to their dreams - keeping the donkey as a pet; ringing other people up randomly to speak to girls; choosing only one size / design per piece of clothing for his shop; learning English so as to relocate to a place with better living standards; not wishing to speak or play his musical instrument but when stirred up, vents his frustration profusely. Here, weddings and funerals seldom occur: it is uneventful. Yet, outsiders want to capture images not of how the place is really like, but of what they perceive of this place - nomadic, pastoral, rustic, etc. But they will never be able to seize that most natural and authentic side of these people.

Graceful and ethereal. Quite unlike anything else I've seen

[sachadelorean · 9/10 · 30 June 2010]

I saw this film at the San Francisco International Film Festival where it won the prestigious FIPRESCI award. The director was there to speak about the film. I've seen my fair share of Iranian films and although generally impressed by the standards, I'd grown somewhat weary and tired of the stylistic similarities displayed by them. Then along came this little gem. I'd like to say out of nowhere. But evidently it has been shown in quite a few places. It stands out from not only other offerings from Iran, but also from pretty much anything else I've seen in a long time. The mixture of humor and sorrow blends effortlessly to provide an atmosphere that allows you to experience a wistful 90 minutes filled with oddities and beauty. Some may find it taxing, but if you let it, it will blow you away.

Poetic and hypnotic

[cinemabooth · 10/10 · 13 July 2010]

I saw this film at the Edinburgh Film Festival this year. I am a frequent visitor to the festival and as usual I watched my fair share of films this year. This little gem from Iran stood out above all others I saw. The film takes place in the director's hometown. An area which I was not at all familiar with. Moving along at a calm pace, it lets you take in all the little details and intricacies of the breathtaking frames and leaves you in an atmospheric wonderland. I won't say anything about plots and story lines because in a way it is unnecessary for this type of film. It's released in the UK on 30th July so go see for yourself and realise that magic and mystery still exist in cinema.

New Iranian Cinema

[jimmyjojo74 · 9/10 · 14 July 2010]

I saw this film at two different festivals and each time I left thinking that Iranian cinema is in safe hands! Although perhaps I shouldn't even limit this film in to a sub category such as Iranian cinema because this film does not resemble much of what I've seen of Iranian cinema. But I still feel that after a disappointing few years, directors like Babak Jalali could well be about to give films from that region a much needed lift. Frontier Blues takes place in a remote part of Northern Iran where Turkmen and Persians live side by side. This film is about the lives lived on that region by a group of men waiting to go places. It's a very atmospheric and confident piece of work and does not rely on any cinematic conventions to tell it's tales. Highly recommended and I hope to be able to see it again.

See this Film!

[zeinadurra · 9/10 · 14 July 2010]

I saw this film at Locarno last year. It's an interesting film and a definite departure from the standard Iranian art-house fare which is refreshing. It's beautifully shot and the melange of humour and melancholy works well. First time director Babak Jalali offers us a look into the world of his native hometown in northern Iran on the border of Turkmenistan, which we would never have seen otherwise. It's a meditative, stylistic portrait of 4 men getting on with their lives, with nowhere to go and not much to look forward to. It does not fall into the trap of clichéd looks at the Middle East and manages instead to provide a heartfelt look at the human condition. It's opening in London this week and I would definitely try and catch it as it's the sort of film you have to see on the big screen.

Slow Barren Beauty Blues - A Must See!

[rstout3526 · 9/10 · 17 April 2013]

Frontier Blues is a portrait of an Iranian border Steppes region by the Caspian Sea that has been fought over for centuries and depicted through the eyes of four village characters, each of a differing tribe - a Persian, a Kazak, a Turkman and an Armenian. Added to which is a Tehran photographer trying to capture it all on film, taxi drivers, cafe owner, factory manager etc. All have aimless lives with no real prospects. Mundane existences in a wide barren landscape littered with relics of the past. The dark humour, stoicism and pathos is abundant and the whole cinematic experience is a true joy to watch. Frontier Blues can be equally likened to other slow paced world cinema gems such as Lake Tahoe, Vodka Lemon, The Return, Historias Minimas, The Banishment, Las Acacias and the wonderful Once Upon A Time in Anatolia. So much different from standard mainstream cinema carp of today. To me they all provide to a western outsider an education and greater understanding of these peoples and places.

Beautifully Strange

[aqua212 · 10/10 · 28 July 2010]

What is so wonderful about Frontier Blues, and also Babak Jalali's previous short, "Heydar: An Afghan in Tehran", is that he is showing us a view of Iran that most of us here have never been exposed to— a perspective free of politics and chaos in a part of Iran that most of us could only see in photo books. And while those photographs reveal the beauty and majesty of northern Iran, they cannot reveal the humanity that Babak is exploring in his film. There are no photos that could capture that monotony of every day life for Alam who works on a chicken farm but who is desperately in love with a girl he has never spoken to. Or Hassan, the village idiot, who's best friend is his donkey and his uncle Kazem who owns a small clothing store where nothing quite fits any one who comes in. And the minstrel who tells the audience of his wife, stolen from him by a man in a green Mercedes years ago.

The people that inhabit Frontier Blues are settled but lost. They long for something better or long for what they could have had, but they continue to live and work every day. The majestic beauty of northern Iran is merely a backdrop, one that doesn't impress them anymore the way they do outsiders. They are stoic and laconic men, maybe more so than if they were not on camera, but in some ways, that is the point. Jalali is looking deeply into them, which often requires a bit of silence and focus, but what he finds is truly beautifully strange.

What a wonderful film!

[snoball · 10/10 · 28 July 2010]

I recently saw this film at the Edinburgh Film Festival. What a brilliant first feature!

The story follows the lives of different men living in a small town in northern Iran. The stories are simple and beautiful, about love and lose, men desperately trying to make a connection and to find meaning in their monotonous everyday existence.

I really loved the pacing of the film. It takes its time. It achieves humor and pathos without trying. It is the kind of film that only comes around once in a while, the kind of film that is getting harder and harder to make or released.

I recommend this gem to anyone who loves the cinema of Kaurismäki or Kiarostami. Babak Jalali is certainly a great new director to watch!