Ayneh

At the end of a schoolday in Teheran, the mother of Mina, who has her arm in plaster, does not come to fetch her. All the children go home, but Mina (Mina Mohammed Kahni, the girl in Panahi's first film The White Balloon) stays behind, because she isn't too sure about finding her way home. In the end she decides to go anyway. But which bus does she have to take? And where must she get out? In the chaos of the big city, not all adults are willing to help. In the bus she listens to strange conversations and to the music of passing minstrels. Then suddenly with a scream, the story of Mina's quest for her home comes to an end. Mina doesn't want to act in the film any more. She gets off the bus. But the girl has forgotten that she is wearing a mike. The film-maker decides to follow her, without her noticing. The story seems to start again: the girl goes looking for her home again, but now as herself.îPanahi manages to evoke a feeling of real time with a true technical tour de force. The excellent photography is the main factor contributing to the idea that the film really was shot in one day. Mina Mohammed Kahni, the untiring focus of the film, manages to realise the star performance demanded of her without any problems.