--- title: "Persepolis: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/persepolis/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/persepolis" critics_score: 81 critics_reviews: 9 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Persepolis (2007): what the critics said Critics' score 81 from 9 reviews: 8 positive, 1 mixed, 0 negative. Most critics respond warmly to Persepolis, with praise centred on its black-and-white animation and the way Marjane Satrapi’s personal story makes political upheaval understandable through family life and growing up. The reviews repeatedly admire the adaptation’s fidelity to the graphic novels without treating that faithfulness as a limit on its inventiveness. They also value its wit, self-deprecation and emotional honesty, finding that the humour allows room for suffering without making the protagonist merely a symbol of it. The reservations concern structure and, more unusually, the animation itself. Screen Daily finds the episodic storytelling a drawback, despite admiring the adaptation’s look and irony. The Hollywood Reporter offers the clearest dissent on the visuals, finding them short of individuality and vitality while judging the politics more compelling. Enthusiasm otherwise ranges from measured approval to emphatic praise, with little disagreement about the value of approaching Iranian history through an individual life. ## Little White Lies — Matt Bochenski Rating 4/5/5. 24 April 2008. The critic praises the film as a humane and heartfelt work executed with sublime skill, calling it a stunning example of the art form. They single out the originality, creativity and risk-taking that elevate animation beyond family entertainment. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/persepolis) ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert Rating 4/4. 17 January 2008. Ebert praises the film as a deeply personal and stylish coming-of-age story about Marjane that stands out for its intelligence and emotional depth compared to typical animated fare. He highlights its careful, loving telling of her life amid political upheaval and personal growth. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/persepolis-2008) ## The AV Club — Noel Murray Rating A-. 24 December 2007. The review praises the film's translation of the graphic novel's spirit into animation, noting its mix of political posters and whimsical cartoon style while capturing personal contradictions and the relativity of strife. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/persepolis-1798203690) ## Slant Magazine Rating 3.5/4. 27 August 2007. The critic lauds the clean, fluid hand-drawn animation and its ability to capture sentiments visually through multicultural influences and stylistic nods, calling it a marvelously emotive work rooted in brutal honesty. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/persepolis/) ## Time Out — Dave Calhoun Rating 4/5. 24 April 2007. The review highlights the film's distinctive soft black-and-white drawings and charcoal backgrounds as its standout feature. It describes the result as a delightful, curious film that blends the personal and political while providing a potted history of modern Iran. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/persepolis-1) ## IndieWire — Kristi Mitsuda Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 17 December 2007. The critic highlights the film's design and visual approach as a strength in adapting the graphic novel's personal and political story. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/culture/review-design-for-living-marjane-satrapi-and-vincent-paronnauds-persepolis-73336/) ## Screen Daily Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 23 May 2007. Festival review. The critic finds the adaptation remarkably faithful to the graphic novels' spirit and look, with its episodic structure as the main drawback. They single out the vein of irony and self-deprecatory humour as one of its charms. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/animation/persepolis/4032827.article) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Kirk Honeycutt Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 23 May 2007. Festival review. The review finds the film's politics more compelling than its art, noting the plain black-and-white animation fails to convey much individuality or vitality. It praises how animation makes the personal story universally relatable rather than exotic. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/persepolis-159083/) ## Empire — Helen O'Hara 1 April 2008. The critic praises the film's personal, autobiographical approach to complex Iranian history and politics through a child's eyes, noting its stark monochrome animation and emotional depth as a coming-of-age story that balances humor and tragedy. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/persepolis-review/) ## Evening Standard 10 April 2012. The critic calls it an extraordinary, witty and ironic portrait of growing up amid historical upheaval, praising the two-dimensional animation for adding character and the film's accurate depiction of youthful resilience against repression. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/out-from-under-the-veil-7405945.html) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw 25 April 2008. The critic calls the film a gripping, witty and sympathetic adaptation of Marjane Satrapi's graphic novels. He singles out its superbly elegant and simple black-and-white animation style for praise, noting how it faithfully reproduces the source material with bold strokes and witty expressions. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2008/apr/25/animation.drama) ## The Independent 29 September 2008. The review highlights the stark and beautiful animation in this coming-of-age story set against war and revolution in Iran, commending its focus on family and people over pure politics while blending humor and tragedy with a rare sense of real history. [Read the review](https://www.independent.co.uk/student/student-life/music-film/review-persepolis-945698.html) ## The New York Times — A.O. Scott Rating Critic's Pick. 25 December 2007. Scott calls the film a simple story told by simple means that unfolds with grace, intelligence and charm, reminding viewers that animation is rooted in bringing images to life. He singles out its flat, stylized depiction of Tehran and Vienna that turns geography into poetry and its expression of the imagination's resistance to literal-minded power. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/25/movies/25pers.html) ## Paste — Jesse Jarnow Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 2 July 2008. The critic calls the film a tender animated adaptation of Marjane Satrapi’s graphic memoir that finds black humor in totalitarianism and renders the stark illustrations into rich black-and-white visuals. It is praised for its charismatic lead character and refusal to see anything in simple black-and-white terms. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/marjane-satrapi/persepolis) ## Eye for Film — Anton Bitel 21 February 2008. The critic praises the film's rare aesthetic beauty in black-and-white animation and its sharp, pacy storytelling that blends personal memoir with political history. The review highlights the smart, self-deprecating protagonist-narrator and the bittersweet focus on loss and exile. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/persepolis-film-review-by-anton-bitel) ## /Film — BJ Colangelo 22 November 2022. The critic celebrates the film's animation style matching the graphic novel and its balance of heartbreak, power, and sardonic humor in depicting a rebellious teen's life amid revolution and oppression. It singles out the relatable protagonist and the film's value in offering Western audiences an authentic, non-stereotypical view of Iranian experience. [Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/1110122/persepolis-uses-animation-to-tell-a-coming-of-age-story-in-the-midst-of-iranian-revolution/) ## The Playlist — Rodrigo Perez Rating [A]. 25 September 2007. Festival review. The review calls the film wonderful, charming, funny, and heartbreaking, praising its unique coming-of-age story that explores tyranny, oppression, and universal themes of growing up female. It notes the Grand Jury Prize win at Cannes and recommends it highly despite a potentially hard sell. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/nyff-review-persepolis-is-another-20070925/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/persepolis.md