Characters

• Conservative Man and Liberal Woman

  - He is a mugger, she is a teacher

  - differing views on crime and political issues

  - she wants to remove the death penalty, but he believes in harsh punishment

  - he represents the law, she represents changing ideologies

  - she's a teacher so she has a different perspective on the world than the man
• Hana

  - product of the government

  - doesn't fit in with the idealised view of Iranian women. Rebellious

  - she represents the government-> she is intent on making her film and tells the boy to give back the stolen money. All she is interested in is putting the good parts of Iran in her film

  
  
• Omid- pirated DVD vendor

  - under a false pretence of ideology/ freedom

  - morally dubious
• Nazarin Sotoudeh

  - she advocates for human rights

  - she was visiting a woman who went to jail for going to a volleyball game

  - she gives Panahi (and us) a rose - a symbol of solidarity

  - she shows her hair - more freedom

  - last passenger - impactful

  - her and Panahi both fight for human rights in a corrupt government. They risked their freedom, fighting for what they believe in.
• Unseen Agents or Thieves

  - not properly seen- lack of freedom of expression

  - Their purpose is open to interpretation

  - the film is a defiance against against Iranian gov, the film ending with these characters shows they will use force to get what they want.

  - Iranian secret police???
• Poor Boy

  - represents the underclass

  - add more later
• Injured Man and His Wife

  - struggle and vulnerabilities of individuals in Iran

  - recording his will as he was bleeding out- to secure their wealth and property

  - man is more concerned his wife will become destitute than his own fate -> patriarchal society

  - social injustice - she can't inherit anything

  - contrasts the last conversation about the death penalty

  His injury:

  - can be seen as a metaphor of the wound inflicted on society.

  - the blood represents all the bloodshed from society and emphasizes it's destructive nature
• Mr Arash - Panahi's Old Friend

  - he got robbed

  - doesn't tell the police

  - upper class

  - move from submission to critiquing the government
• The Two Superstitious Women

  - tradition

  - change in tone - COMEDY

  - pace quickens- they are rushing

  - purse demonstrates manners

  - Panahi's first impressions of them are dismissive of their beliefs. Juxtaposing tradition with progression

  - new camera angle in back of car- visual juxtaposition between Panahi's calm and the women's panic and hysteria