iranian film makes $/ contraversy

[lester1/2jr]

Sell-out film that pokes fun at the mullahs faces ban in Iran
By Behzad Farsian in Teheran
(Filed: 08/05/2004)


A film satirising the clergy that has taken Iran by storm is likely to be banned after leading ayatollahs said it was creating "social corruption".

 
 
The film, The Lizard, follows the trail of an escaped thief, Reza Marmoulak, "Reza the Lizard". It opens with the thief in hospital next to a dying cleric.

"There is no heaven or hell," Reza tells the cleric as he steals his turban and robes. Reza, wearing his disguise, reaches a village near the Turkish border on his way to flee Iran. The people there have been expecting a cleric and mistake Reza for him. They follow him to the mosque, listen to his sermons and take his advice.

A 20-year-old filmgoer said: "It's a hilarious film that shows how the public sees the mullahs. I still can't believe it was allowed to be screened."

The film, which has been a sell-out in Teheran, has had such an impact that it is common to hear youths yelling "Hey, Marmoulak" to passing clerics.

Liberal clerics have praised it, welcoming the thief's transformation from a life of crime to religion.

But Ahmad Jannati, the head of the powerful Guardian Council, said: "The screening of such movies must be confronted because this makes fun of clerics. It should be banned."

The release of the film three weeks ago was delayed while it was vetted by the ministry of Islamic guidance and culture. Four scenes totalling one minute were cut.

Hard-line clerics in the city of Mashad have banned the film there. Its release in the holy city of Qom is expected to provoke even greater opposition.

Fazel Meybodi, a middle-ranking cleric in Qom, thinks it should be shown.

"This is a very realistic film which has raised many issues for debate in religious circles," he said. "It is good that the clerics can see what people think of them."

[dean]

That's pretty interesting.  Some of the best international films that have been released are banned in their country of origin, just for the controversy and values that are expressed in them.  One that springs to mind is 'Raise the Red Lantern' which was banned in China, not because it mocked communist government [usually the reason behind a banning] but because it criticised Chinese history outlined the sexism and opression of women in the early Chinese period. [or at least that's what i've been told.]

Raise the red lantern is an incredibly moving picture, and a classic banned film.

For comedic reasons, i'm sure The Lizard will perhaps attain that status as well [provided it's banned of course :P]

[lester1/2jr]

good bet it will be banned