A Language of Strange Cities: Universal Language
Matthew Rankin’s Universal Language (2024) takes place in a quasi-fictional city merging Winnipeg, Canada, and Tehran, Iran, where three distinct stories gradually converge. Blending absurd humor with cultural hybridity, the film explores how randomness and dislocation can reveal deeper connections between people and places. Rankin’s vision suggests that universality arises not from sameness or logical coherence, but from the fluid coexistence of difference—a cinematic space where each bit of st
