Une langue universelle

UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE is an oddball comedy that at first seems like something from the French "theatre of the absurd" of 100 years ago. One character is a tour guide in Winnipeg, a really dull town, especially in the dead of winter. It's fun to watch him try to make something interesting out of things like a dried-up fountain in the courtyard of a virtually deserted shopping mall, or a briefcase left at a bus stop in the 1970s. And there's the lady whose job is to promote the use of Kleenex. She goes to funerals giving out Kleenexes and encouraging people to cry. She herself collects her tears. In her closet, she has several jars of tears with labels on them indicating the years they were shed. There's a bingo parlor where the prizes are crates of Kleenex. Or the schoolboy who wants to be a comedian and goes around dressed and made up like Groucho Marx. And, of course, a turkey alleged to have won an avian beauty contest, who steals a boy's glasses. There are many other threads of the story that are all seemingly unrelated. I decided early on not to try to make sense of it and just see what happens next. I believe that that is the right strategy to take watching this movie. Amazingly it all comes together at the end to make a rather sweet and heartfelt story. It's in French and Farsi with English subtitles. Wisely clocking in at slightly less than an hour and a half, it's a delicate film with something to say about Love.

For its creativity, inventiveness, soundtrack, boldness, unique humor, cast, and sociolinguistic vision, it's a yes. For the film's length, contextual setup, and a few redundancies, it's less so. Excellent directing technique and a brilliant idea in how the characters are written in one of the film's final scenes (a remarkable process) and its significance up to the end. One shouldn't go into this movie expecting a linear narrative. That said, this aspect doesn't truly detract from the quality of the plot. A beautiful progression from Rankin as a director since his film The Twentieth Century. A few common elements between these two productions (dreamlike quality, kitsch...) are already beginning to define what will become his personal signature over time.

This brilliant gem of film traces the the interacting lives of a group of children trying to find some money to help a schoolmate and a son returning for his mother's birthday. T The film establishes a unique and somewhat surreal fantasy universe, where most residents speak Farsi and have Iranian descent. The setting, characterized by graveyards alongside highways, empty malls, and rural bars, evokes a sense of emptiness and isolation reminiscent of the show "Northern Exposure" after developers arrived in the town. Like "Northern Exposure," "Universal Language" centers around the central decency and humanity of its characters. The film's peculiarity lies in its exceptional use of cuts, shots, and color, which prevents it from becoming cloying. Instead, it serves as an earnest exploration of memory and responsibility.

This very unusual film by Matthew RANKIN is being entered by Canada into the race for the OSCAR for Best International Film and has already made it onto the shortlist for this award.

The interwoven stories are set in snow-covered Canada (in Quebec and Winnipeg) and tell of bizarre characters who experience very unusual things. No more should be revealed at this point, as this film thrives on its satirical bizarreness. We can reveal that the characters appear almost exclusively speak Persian, and the whole thing takes place against a very monotonous city backdrop. In Persian, UNE LANGUE UNIVERSELLE probably means THE SONG OF THE TURKEY. And a turkey is not entirely unimportant for the course of the plot.

The film is definitely something special and can be interpreted in many different ways. A story about migrants, problems of people from Iran in a bizarre setting or even a nightmare of a homeland where the familiar French is no longer spoken: all of these interpretations are conceivable and certainly many more. In any case, you experience a magically transfigured film that shows everything familiar in a new and satirically transfigured light. But above all, these are very human stories that bring a smile to the audience's face despite the icy cold of the snowy landscapes shown.

What happens when you take the cultural traditions of two seemingly distant worlds and fuse them into a chaotically harmonious mosaic? In "Universal Language", Matthew Rankin crafts a story that's both absurdly specific and oddly universal, examining Canadian identity through the lens of a deeply personal reimagining. The result is an ode to multiculturalism, brimming with ironic humor, cultural parodies, and a warm humanity that transcends linguistic boundaries.

From the start, Rankin plunges us into an alternate Canada where Farsi and French are the official languages. This choice might seem random at first, but it's actually a meticulous effort to subvert traditional narratives of Canadian identity. The visual humor-like a Winnipeg school sign written in Persian script-sets the film's quirky tone, blending magical realism with deadpan comedy. Professor Bilodeau, played with biting wit by Mani Soleymanlou, becomes both a symbol of everyday exasperation and a tragicomic figure embodying the tensions between cultural tradition and innovation.

The journey of sisters Negin (Rojina Esmaeili) and Nazgol (Saba Vahedyousefi) captures Rankin's vision of childhood as a realm of improbable discoveries and absurd adventures. When they find a frozen banknote stuck in ice, their innocent desire to free it morphs into a mission that takes them through brutalist neighborhoods with monochromatic names. This icy, concrete setting deliciously contrasts with the cultural vibrancy brought to life by the sisters' Farsi dialogue and boundless energy. Their quest isn't just about retrieving a piece of money-it's a metaphor for perseverance and the search for meaning in an often indifferent world.

In a parallel narrative, Rankin inserts himself as a fictionalized version of himself, delivering a storyline that's equal parts comedic and introspective. His journey to visit his ailing mother in Manitoba highlights the peculiarities of Canadian life: a live turkey with its own seat on the bus, banal monuments celebrated as historical landmarks. This balance between the mundane and the surreal is where the film truly shines, transforming small, everyday details into sharp commentary on national identity, collective memory, and the bonds that connect us.

Rankin's cinematic influences are both obvious and masterfully employed. Winnipeg's aesthetic recalls the work of Guy Maddin, while the bizarre scenarios evoke Roy Andersson's humor. Yet at its heart, the film pulses with the sensitivity of Abbas Kiarostami. The classroom scenes, blending humor with a touch of melancholy, are a direct homage to Iranian cinema, adding a layer of universality that transcends geography. This cultural connection isn't a superficial gimmick but is deeply woven into the narrative, reflecting Rankin's genuine effort to explore what it means to belong in a constantly shifting world.

Even in its lightheartedness, "Universal Language" delivers a sharp critique of identity and cultural integration. By reimagining Canada as a space shared between two cultures, the film challenges xenophobia and isolation, offering a vision where differences are celebrated rather than erased. There's also a playful provocation in the film's visual and narrative choices, like Tim Hortons signs written in Farsi or pharmacies embracing the exaggerated minimalism of the No Name brand. These local jokes might not land as strongly with international audiences, but they add layers of authenticity for those familiar with Canadian cultural symbols.

What truly elevates "Universal Language", though, is its ability to balance absurdity with empathy. No matter how eccentric the situations get-whether it's Turks navigating the city or reenactments of 1950s parking lot incidents-the film never loses sight of its characters' humanity. The third act's role-swapping among actors reinforces the idea that, despite cultural or linguistic differences, we share a common essence.

In the end, Rankin delivers more than a film-he offers a cinematic experience that challenges conventions while celebrating life's complexity. "Universal Language" isn't just a cultural satire or a surreal homage; it's a reminder that, even in a fragmented world, there's still room for connection, understanding, and, of course, a little bit of madness.