No One Knows About Persian Cats (Kasi az gorbehaye irani khabar nadareh - 2009)

Jack & I really enjoyed this indie film about indie rock in totalitarian Iran. Winner of Un Certain Regard, the Special Jury Prize at Cannes in 2009, it takes us through the underground lairs of Tehran as our heroes put together a band and try to get out of the country to play a gig in London. Other than the opening song, which makes the music producer (played by director/co-writer Bahman Ghobadi) wince, the music is first rate. Ghobadi made this in 17 days, without permits nor government approval, because it really is a crime to play rock music in Iran. That explains why the cameraperson played fast and loose with focusing. The two leads, Negar Shaghagi (a woman) and Ashkan Koshanejad (a man), are musicians playing improvised fictionalized versions of themselves. The soundtrack is killer, mixing traditional Iranian music with something you would expect to hear in an American arena. I just bought it on itunes, to support Negar and Ashkan, whose band is called Take It Easy Hospital (a number of other bands are featured in the movie and on the soundtrack). Here's the trailer. Now go see the movie.