Universal Language
Did you ever believe you would engage with a film that transplant Persian New Wave cinema to the stony , rigid , cold street of Winnipeg , Manitoba ? I certainly did n’t . In fact , I have given the prominent Canadian city very small thought throughout my life , but now it is all I can think about thanks toUniversal Language .
Director and conscientious objector - author Matthew Rankin ’s movie comply three interconnected plots go under in a version of Winnipeg that is essentially Iran meets Canada in the fourscore and 90s . Farsi has supplant English in this absurdist , off - pound funniness - drama about masses simply existing . A pair of sister , a tour guide , and a former government worker from Quebec lead the quirky feature film that takes us on a tour of Winnipeg ’s concrete hobo camp .
Universal Language Invites Us On An Absurdist-Inspired Tour
Universal Languageis a shit , especially for anyone familiar with Winnipeg and Canada . Absurdist cinema may not be for all , but for those who love the literary genre , Rankin relishes the intentionally stilted visuals and the deadpan pitch of the funny moments that make up his second feature . Despite the grey-haired and beige coloring palette of the snow - stricken metropolis , there is an vast sense of affectionateness infused into the film , and the ' 80s stylization adds a touch of nostalgia .
Jeannette Rankin — along with co - writer Pirouz Nemati and Ila Firouzabadi — avoid all expected value and go for a ocular and narrative approach that is constantly unexpected and dizzyingly charming . The core subject is crystal clear . remindful as it may be , there is a profoundly personal purpose that is the source of the film ’s compassionate outlook , which is seen and felt through the camerawork and cinematography .
The randomness of the dialogue and situations is enriched by the cultural specificityUniversal Languageimplements . There is swell reverence for Winnipeg , and although the metropolis has been the fanny of many jokes , the film truly hammer home his love of the town . Rankin even inserts himself as the politics worker named Matthew who quits his problem ( in a hilarious scene score by the SOB of a authorities worker in a kiosk , which is exactly how I think government workplaces are like ) to return home to worry for his female parent .
As heartwarming as the plot thread is , however , it does overcome the film in the latter half . Rankin ’s office in the film is to showcase his reverence for Winnipeg , which is supplant by his compassionate cry for integrity . It is in how the character interact , their dialog , and the uncomplicated stunner of Farsi and French blend together that is a highlighting . There are no grand argumentation about how ideologically deprive one state is over the other ; there is no tugboat - of - warfare between the two cultures in the fictitious , and somewhat aspirational , worldUniversal Languagehas created .
Universal Language Emphasizes Empathy & Unity
In an eld where intolerance has become the average and the differences between us have become incendiary political talking compass point , Universal Languageacts as a counterargument . It is pointedly relevant to the current social climate in Canada , arriving on the heels of a horrific incident in Ajax , Ontario where a woman was nearly set on fire for wearing hijab . While the film addresses terminology issues , Rankin strikes the precise chords that elicit solid emotion towards Canada ’s struggle as a multicultural country . There ’s been an increase gall of the nation being a cultural photomosaic andUniversal Languageaddresses this in its own way .
Rankin avoids all expectations and goes for a ocular and narrative approach shot that is always unexpected and dizzyingly magic .
Sure , Universal Languagefollows the dogma of absurd cinema to the letter — the deadpan humor and the matter - of - fact plotting make for an entertaining time — but the film carries the burden of being an emotional litmus test trial to gauge one ’s openness to understanding the vitality of cross - cultural dialogue and embracing diversity . Rankin is n’t making some grand , wholesale requirement that Farsi become a legally bound language ; instead , there is a demand for empathy and openness to recognise that the differences that fraction us are not all - consuming nor override the thing about us that are alike .
In an implausibly accurate manner , Universal Languageillustrates that despite defining cultural traits , those from other countries can adapt to a different environment and co - survive with the region ’s resident . Language , organized religion , civilization , race , and ethnicity hardly have any bearing on how citizenry can co - exist in a shoes like Winnipeg . Overall , the existent fib inUniversal Languagedoesn’t matter . It is the executing that bear out the most . It is a offbeat take on transverse - cultural dialogue , a intermixture between Wes Anderson and Abbas Kiarostami ’s styles that taps into something more profound than its aesthetic and comedic pick .
It ’s affirm and remind us that being Canadian is not set by arbitrary standards . It is n’t language that defines us , nor our cultural setting , but our character .
Universal Language follows Nazgol and Hossein in Winnipeg as they assist a class fellow in retrieving an Iranian banknote . Concurrently , Matthew Rankin impart his line in Montreal to reunite with his family , connect with Massoud , a tour guide caring for Rankin ’s mother .
Universal Language follows Nazgol and Hossein in Winnipeg as they assist a classmate in retrieving an Iranian banknote. Concurrently, Matthew Rankin leaves his job in Montreal to reunite with his family, connecting with Massoud, a tour guide caring for Rankin’s mother.
