Persepolis ★★★ 2007 (PG-13)

Animated universal coming-of-age tale spans the life of a young Iranian girl beginning at the tumultuous period from the end of the rule of the Shah through the abrupt transition to the fundamentalist Muslim regime that followed. The profound impact of the many changes Marjane (Mastroianni) endures is heartrending. Although she is part of a modern and progressive Iranian family, she is forced to don a face-covering veil; she then flees to Austria, where she is an outsider stereotyped as a fanatical Muslim. When she finally returns to Iran, she finds that she is an outsider in her native land, and she is forced yet again to flee. Adapted from the semi-autobiographical graphic novel by Marjane Satrapi, the characters are expressed as rather low-tech line drawings when compared to other contemporary animation, but the resulting images and storyline are relatable. 95m/B DVD . FRD: Marjane Satrapi, Vincent Paronnauel; W: Marjane Satrapi, Vincent Paronnauel; M: Olivier Bernet; V: Chiara Mastroianni, Danielle Darrieux, Simon Abkarian, Gabrielle Lopes, Catherine Deneuve, Francois Jerosme.

Persepolis a city in ancient Persia, situated to the north-east of Shiraz. It was founded in the late 6th century bc by Darius I as the ceremonial capital of Persia under the Achaemenid dynasty. The city's impressive ruins include functional and ceremonial buildings and cuneiform inscriptions in Old Persian, Elamite, and Akkadian. It was partially destroyed in 330 bc by Alexander the Great, and though it survived as the capital of the Seleucids it began to decline after this date.

Persepolis City of ancient Persia (Iran), c.60km (37mi) ne of Shiraz. As the capital (539–330 bc) of the Achaemenid Empire, it was renowned for its splendour. It was destroyed by the forces of Alexander the Great in 330 bc.