Hanan Turk is now arguing that Egyptian cinema should make Iranian cinema as a role model and use only veiled actresses in films. So three days after covering up her hair, she is lecturing and theorizing. How about some modesty? I mean real modesty instead of this false one that she wearing on her sleeve (head to be more exact). Try saying something like: My decision is a personal one. End of story.
As one of her unveiled colleagues pointed out, the Iranian cinema's excellence is not because the actresses are veiled. In fact, the veiling of the actresses in Iranian films poses serious problems for the directors, who, to their credit, come up with creative solutions, but also waste energy that they could use on other fronts.
One film I taught this semester is Leila, an Iranian film directed by Dariush Mehruji. It's very good. The female lead (as all the other women) was wearing a scarf throughout the film, even in the scenes when in real life she wouldn't be wearing a scarf, such as inside the house, with her husband, and with other female characters. And although she and her husband are very much in love, they couldn't touch each other once and a respectful distance was kept between them throughout. The director tried to show their love and intimacy in other ways, such as through food. In one scene Leila is lying in bed, covered up to her neck by the sheet and wearing a scarf. And as if this is not enough, her face was half in shadow while her husband is trying to talk to her in one of the film's most intimate moments. Unlike before, the director was allowed to use close up shots of the actress's face, and he took advantage. Also she was permitted to wear make up, a no-no earlier.
No comments:
Post a Comment