Mohammad Rasoulof's film was made clandestinely under highly secretive conditions. Due to its controversial and politically sensitive content, even after its release the cast and crew (bar Rasoulof) remain anonymous.The film has been made with a digital camera using non-actors. The title of the film is taken fro a sentence in Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita. Manuscripts... is "inspired" by real events in Iran where a series of intellectuals were murdered in what was called "Serial Killings". These murders have largely remained unresolved. The film treats these events in a very realistic and matter of fact way which makes them even more chilling and disturbing. The two main protagonists assigned with the killings go about their daily life in a very normal manner, one tending to his sick child at the hospital while the other offers prayers to God so that the child can get well soon! Rasoulof's use of camera and sound is exemplary, achieving maximum tension and sustaining it for most of the film. Highly recommended but not for the squeamish.
Review of Manuscripts Don't Burn
