The President

Subtlety is at a premium in this allegorical study of dictatorial disdain and revolutionary recrimination. But there's no denying the potency of a story co-scripted by Mohsen Makhmalbaf and his film-making partner, Marziyeh Meshkini. Set in an unnamed country, the action follows a toppled tyrant (Misha Gomiashvili) and young grandson (Dachi Orvelashvili) as they embark upon a Lear-like odyssey disguised as a street musician and his dancing boy. Yet, while the grandson retains his privileged innocence, as they endure danger and frequent humiliation in order to survive, the former president continues to exhibit the traits that enabled him to impose his ruthless will on his downtrodden subjects. Several potential models for the deposed president spring to mind, but Makhmalbaf avoids specifics in a bid to reinforce the satirical fairytale aura. However, the political analysis often feels didactic and simplistic, with the result that, even though this offers poignant insights into childlike incomprehension and trust, it's less effective as a treatise on the cyclical nature of violence and the state of the modern world.