Women Imprisoned Panahiís Ambitious ëCircleí Depicts Plight of Women in Tehran by Ky N. Nguyen The renowned Iranian director of "The White Balloon" and "The Mirror" moves beyond using children as protagonists with "The Circle." Itís a much more ambitious and complex work, a brutally honest account of the lives of women in modern Tehran. The formal structure of a circular narrative elegantly conveys the plight of women throughout Iranian society, passing the plot baton from one scene to another via a pair of characters. This narrative structure is best known from 1950s "La Ronde," directed by Max Oph¸ls. Jafar Panahi, however, does not claim familiarity with "La Ronde." In fact, he has not watched films in five years, partly to protect his own ideas from being "influenced" by other films and filmmakers. The crisp, bright photographyís long takes are mesmerizing. They never feel slow, a rhythmic feeling enhanced by Panahiís technique of editing within the take by shifting camera angles during the shot. Each scene is full of small moments of everyday action, creating a palpable tension on screen. The viewer doesnít want to glance away for fear of missing something. The women are made alive by the ensemble cas tís realistic performances. With the exception of Fereshteh Sadr Orfani and Fatemeh Naghavi, professional actors cast by Panahi to capture the right look, the cast is mostly nonprofessionalóquite common in Iranian cinema. At the hospital, a woman finds out that her new grandchild is a girl. Because the ultrasound indicated a boy, she knows that her disappointed son-in-lawís family will abandon her daughter and granddaughter. Three women have just left prison, but freedom is a relative matter as they seek the resolution of their problems, financial and otherwise. A young woman is not permitted to travel between cities unless she has either an escort or a student identification. Lacking either, she claims to have forgotten the latter to buy a bus ticket. A single woman needing an abortion is thrown out of her fatherís house and threatened with death by her brothers. A poor woman tries to abandon her daughter, believing the child will be better off with another family. After accepting a ride from a stranger, sheís arrested under suspicion of prostitution. When the police officer is distracted by chaos in the "red-light district," an apparently real prostitute passively comes to her aid. There are more women in "The Circle," just as there are more women in Iran. Panahi depicts them as being interchangeable. They interact with one another in small and large ways, even living each otherís lives at times. They help one another when they can, but thereís a limit to what they can do. Some women have shadier pasts than others do, but the camera doesnít pass judgement on any of them. The viewer never gains a clear understanding of their crimes. Thatís the point: in the prison of modern Iranian society, all women are treated as criminals. They are all watched and are all suspected. Social and bureaucratic institutions give womenís everyday existence an additional level of burden unshared by men. For instance, smoking in public is completely forbidden for women, an obstacle that smokers in this smoking-unfriendly country may partially empathize with as they observe the charactersí frantic search for a safe place to smoke. Panahi doesnít consider "The Circle" to be a feminist or political film. (This statement is reminiscent of Marziyeh Meshkiniís comments about her stunning debut, "The Day I Became a Woman.") Heís more concerned with the struggles of humanity and regrets having to limit his portrayals in "The Circle" to mostly women for narrative purposes. "The Circle" won the esteemed Golden Lion at Venice and has gathered nearly unanimous critical acclaim worldwide. "The Circle [Dayereh]" (Farsi with English subtitles; 87 min.) is now playing at Cineplex Odeon Dupont Circle. Back to Basics In a conscious effort to fight off the vulgarities he sees in todayís commercial Chinese cinema, director Zhang Yimou ("Red Sorghum," "Raise the Red Lantern") paints a beautiful and emotional landscape of rural northern China during the Cultural Revolution. This simple love story flows gracefully with straightforward narration, stark black and white and stunning color photography, pleasantly uplifting music, and amazingly little conflict. With its streamlined narrative and detailed attention to the small wonders of everyday life, "The Road Home" (Silver Bear at Berlin, World Cinema Audience Award at Sundance) feels more like Iranian cinema. In the present time, a businessman returns home for the funeral of his father, the village teacher for decades. His mother insists on following rigorous old customs. Men traveling on foot must carry the coffin along the long journey home. While he ponders the logistics, her son recalls the fabled story of his parentsí courtship. After the loss of Gong Li, Zhang Yimouís longtime muse, his latest "discovery" is the lovely Zhang Ziyi (no relation). She holds the picture together, in full command of her debut role as a country girl infatuated with the newly arrived teacher. Her remarkably expressive face pours emotion into the camera, recalling the ghosts of silent movie stars such as Ruan Ling-yu (vividly portrayed by Maggie Cheung in "The Actress"). Zhang Ziyi is already making her way to Hollywood, already surpassing the popularity of her "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" co-stars Michelle Yeoh and Chow Yun-Fat. She will next appear as a Chinese-speaking villain in the Hong Kong-based "Rush Hour 2." "The Road Home (Wo De Fu Qin Mu Qin)" (Mandarin with English subtitles; 89 min.; scope) opens June 8 in Washington, D.C. Justice for Janitors British director Ken Loach ("My Name Is Joe") transplants his leftist ideals to Los Angeles, covering the plight of primarily Latino, non-unionized custodial workers in a story inspired by the Justice for Janitors campaign. Despite the presence of Adrien Brody ("Liberty Heights," "The Thin Red Line," "Summer of Sam") as a union organizer and cameos by several movie stars, Loach hasnít sold out to Hollywood. In fact, Loachís shaky handling of the Los Angeles milieu betrays his lack of familiarity with it compared to the gritty realism of his Scottish films. The bland interiors and exteriors could be set just about anywhere. Even though Loach is a bit out of his element in La-La Land, what other world-class filmmaker would possibly make this movie? Although this is his first film set in the United States, itís his third largely in Spanish ("Carlaís Song," "Land and Freedom"). The cast is effective, particularly Pilar Padilla and Elpidia Carrillo as a pair of headstrong sisters. Even the awkwardness of the nonprofessional actors seems to work out when interpreted as the reticence of long oppressed people. The overall mood is somewhat lighter than Loachís typically bleak fare, a highlight being a lively fiesta complete with music and dancing. With plenty of conflict and repeated moments of catharsis, Loachís personal blend of fiction and documentary still presents a harrowing portrait of the underclass. "Bread and Roses [Pan y Rosas]" (Spanish with English subtitles and English with Spanish subtitles; 100 min.) is now playing in Washington, D.C. Mirrors of Germany This tale of a young German in exile, trying to assimilate into her adopted home, could be considered a semiautobiographical reflection of director Volker Schl^ndorff. He rose to international prominence when 1979ís "The Tin Drum" won the Cannes Palm díOr and the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. Over the years, heís spent time in Hollywood making features like "Palmetto" and "The Handmaidís Tale," which have received mixed reviews. This engaging social parable about a divided Germany begins in the 1970s. Rita (Bibiana Beglau) is a radical West German terrorist on the lam who finds refuge in the East. "Legend" is Stasi slang for an assumed identity created for Rita by Erwin, an unusually sympathetic intelligence officer (Martin Wuttke). Desperately wanting to fit into working-class East German society, Rita befriends Tatjana (Nadja Uhl)ówho only desires to get out. Beglau and Uhl shared the Best Actress prize at the Berlin Film Festival for their emotionally charged performances. The quietly intense atmosphere recreates an engrossing world. East Germany is portrayed in an evenhanded manner, full of regular people struggling to survive. By the end, however, the film still feels somewhat incomplete. Perhaps thatís transference from the unfinished search for identity by Ritaóas well as by Schl^ndorff a nd a "unified" Germany. "The Legend of Rita [Die Stille Nach dem Schuss]" (German with English subtitles, 103 min.) opens June 8 at Visions Cinema Bistro Lounge. Repertory Notes The National Gallery of Art (www.nga.gov/programs/film.htm, 202-842-6799) showcases new prints from Winstar Cinema of Eric Rohmerís six contes moraux (moral tales) and six comÈdies et proverbes (comedies and proverbs). The deservedly distinguished Rohmer ("An Autumn Tale"), a former critic with "Cahiers du CinÈma" and founding member of the French New Wave, is known for his intelligent pictures featuring witty dialogue and idiosyncratic details. The Visions of the Afterlife: Chinese Ghost-Story Films plays at the Freer and Sackler Galleries (www.asia.si.edu/programs/film.htm, 202-357-2700) in conjunction with the Sackler exhibition, Worshiping the Ancestors: Chinese Commemorative Portraits. June highlights include "Dream Lover" (starring Chow Yun-Fat of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and Brigitte Lin), "Time and Tide" director Tsui Harkís delirious "Green Snake" (starring Maggie Cheung of "In the Mood for Love"), and King Huís "Legend of the Mountain." On Mondays in June, the Screening Room of the Washington Jewish Film Festival (www.dcjcc.org/screeingroom.htm, 202-777-3247) presents a series with the Forum for the Psychoanalytic Study of Film. Titles include "The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz" (Canada) and Vittorio De Sicaís "The Garden of the Finzi-Continis" (Italy). The Reel Affirmations Pride Film Festival (www.reelaffirmations.org/pride/index.cfm, 202-986-1119) runs at the Lincoln Theatre. It includes a June 4 preview of the upcoming Canadian release "Lost and Delirious," director LÈa Poolís follow-up to "Set Me Free (Emporte-Moi)." Filmfest DC 2001ís Audience Award (www.filmfestdc.org) was shared by "Himalaya" (France/Switzerland/UK) and "Lumumba" (France/Belgium/Germany/Haiti), both scheduled for July openings at Visions. The runner-up was "Divided We Fall" (Czech Republic), scheduled to open June 22. The rest of the top-10 follows: 3. Dust to Dust (Mexico), 4. "Bread & Tulips" (Italy), 5. "Wake Up Love" (Argentina), 6. "Calle 54" (Spain/France/Italy), 7. "Bob Marley in Concert" (Germany), 8. "The Gleaners and I" (France), 9. "Bread and Roses" (UK/Germany/Spain/Switzerland/France), and 10. "The Turandot Project" (US/Germany). Filmfest entries currently playing commercially include "Bread and Roses," "Calle 54," "The Luzhin Defence" (UK/France), and "With a Friend Like Harry" (France). Releases are also scheduled for "Brother" (Japan/UK/France/US) in July and "Together" (Sweden/Denmark/Italy) in August. Other films are future possibilities. Visions (www.visionsdc.com) has hosted a number of special events with international and diplomatic flavors. Continuing an Arab cinema series, Alwan (www.alwan.org) presents preeminent Egyptian director Youssef Chahineís "The Sparrow" on June 22. Ky N. Nguyen is the film reviewer for The Washington Diplomat.