Marjane is voiced as a child by Gabrielle Lopes Benites, and as an adult by Chiara Mastroianni. The story begins shortly before the Iranian revolution of 1979. Marjane is a child in a well-to-do household led by her secular, liberal parents (Simon Abkarian and Catherine Deneuve).
After the Shah is deposed, Iran is ruled by conservative Muslims that crack down on personal freedoms. A lengthy, disastrous war with Iraq increases political and economic tensions. The rebellious Marjane is sent to Austria to avoid persecution. There, she becomes of age, has failed romances, experiments with drugs, and ends up homeless.
Wisely, she returns home to her parents, who are still in Iran. The war with Iraq is thankfully over, but the country is still tightly controlled by powerful and well organized religious fanatics. Again, it appears that the outspoken Marjane will get herself into political hot water, so her family obtains a visa for Marjane to immigrate to France.
How others will see it. Persepolis was nominated for six César Awards, the French equivalent of the Oscars. The film was so highly regarded by its country of origin that it was submitted to the Academy Awards in the category of Best Foreign Language Film, in place of a live action movie.
However, Persepolis received only one Oscar nomination, as Best Animated Feature. It lost to Ratatouille which, while good for its kind, had only one real advantage over Persepolis: the home field status (and promotional power) of Disney Studios.
The imdb.com user ratings are extremely high. Women like the film best, presumably out of sympathy for the lead. A man might regard Marjane (as a film character) as a failure, although in real life, or course, she is now highly successful as a French artist, author, and celebrity.
I saw Persepolis on the Encore Wham cable movie channel, which is targeted toward children. Presumably, the film appeared there because it is a cartoon. But it is not a children's movie, it has adult themes, and in fact, I don't recommend anyone under the age of 13 seeing it.
How I felt about it. Persepolis tackles several important issues. Politically, it condemns the Iranian government, and accuses it of slaughtering hundreds of thousands of political prisoners. Strict religious laws effectively suppress the people. Iran has in turn condemned the film, which only further ensures its popularity.
The secular Marjane is hardly one to embrace a rigid Islamic theocracy. But there is more to her story than suffering (to a lesser extent than many others) under a government hostile to freedom. She also learns about life in a Western country. There, the people are free, but they are also on their own. If they make the wrong choices, as Marjane eventually does, they feel the indifference of a society that expects individuals to fend for themselves.
Finally, Marjane learns hard truths about love and politics. Concerning the former, whom you love today you may despise tomorrow, and concerning the latter, it is quixotic for one man or woman to oppose the government. You will simply be crushed.