In his most accessible and spontaneous picture, ranking Iranian helmer Jafar Panahi reveals unsuspected comic gifts.
VARIETY

Eloquent, invigorating, tightly paced, and endlessly enjoyable…a fully engaged, life-affirming drama that is equal parts comedy, political metaphor, and suspense film…a mix of breathless pacing and narrative minimalism; Panahi’s characters are thrust into circumstances that make them observers of the schematics of present-day Iranian society, visualized by the filmmaker in fluid, freeform long takes that prize human agility over cinema pyrotechnics. “Offside” further realizes this great artist’s vision of his ever-changing, troubled political present—one that American audiences really need to see right now.
INDIEWIRE

There’s no denying its rough, rousing power or its relevance as an illuminating social document.
TIME OUT

A spirited rebuke of the political and social restrictions faced by women in Iran. Tinged with tragedy and tension but ultimately buoyant in tone…these stroppy city girls’ ability to outwit the country-boy soldiers trying to keep them out gives Offside a surprising exuberance, one that’s further enhanced by Panahi’s semi-documentary shooting style and his energetic cast. The extraordinary final scenes not only raise hopes that Iranian society is capable of transformation but that Western viewers will realize there’s more that unites our cultures than our respective governments would have us believe.
EYE WEEKLY

Panahi has made a comedy: mocking, farcical, celebratory.
THE INDEPENDENT