Review: Persepolis

This stark and beautiful art-house cartoon is an animated coming-of-age story with a difference, set against the backdrop of war and revolution in Iran.

Deservedly nominated for an Oscar, the true tale of graphic artist Marjane Satrapi’s childhood unfolds as a monochrome flashback, charting her journey from a precocious girl who secretly rocks out to Iron Maiden to an empowered young woman, via a spell in Vienna.

Despite the harrowing landscape, it is really a story about people and family more than the politics of Tehran. Managing to be both laugh-out-loud funny and heartwrenchingly tragic, Persepolis has a sense of real history that is all too rare in animated movies. A making-of featurette, additional short film, deleted scenes and cast interviews round off a great DVD.

• Directors: Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud
• Cast: Sean Penn, Chiara Mastroianni, Iggy Pop, Catherine Deneuve
• Certificate: 15
• Genre: Animation
• Out Now