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Raging against the gods

In the thirteenth century A.D. there was Rumi and Shams. In 2700 B.C. there was King Gilgamesh and Enkidu. The heroes, Rumi and Gilgamesh, were civilized masters of their domain, enjoying a small greatness in their time. Shams and Enkidu were untutored outsiders who burst in from the wild to become the heroes' beloved companions. The same extraordinary spiritual upheaval created by the unlikely friendships launched both Rumi and Gilgamesh out of their time and into legend. George Charbak's play, The Epic of Gilgamesh with a long prologue, thankfully does not dwell on the Enkidu-Shams comparison. In fact Enkidu's god protector is simply referred to as the sun god, sidestepping the god's real name Shamash, the root for the Arabic word Shams >>>

Interfering with play

One Sunday, I had the distinct hal-geery to attend a benefit screening of "Offside", the controversial and noted film by now-famed Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi (The White Balloon; The Circle, Crimson Gold). As advertised, the film is about 5 young women who try to sneak into the Azadi (Formerly Aryamehr) Stadium to watch the famous match between Iran and Bahrain that led to Iran qualifying for the 2006 World Cup. Resulting in a dismal first round elimination of Iran on the World Stage of Soccer, subsequently, summarily, forthwith, tout suite.>>>

Scott Baio is 45 and single

One of the many things you don’t know about me is this: Scott Baio was my first celebrity crush. Sure I have a very sophisticated list of male celebrity crushes today: from Jon Stewart to George Clooney to my latest delicious acquisition Jon Hamm (he of the excellent Mad Men on AMC), my fantasy life is filled with funny, good looking, and more importantly, highly talented celebrities. But I have to admit, it all started from Scott Baio. I do have an excuse for this seeming lapse of taste in my life: I was a newly arrived immigrant from Iran and had left a small nurturing school in Tehran for the large jungle otherwise known as the Los Angeles County Public School system.>>>

Man Irooniam

Over the vast expanse of the universe, a vagrant seed of a concept drifts about and lands on fertile land and is nurtured into a tree by intense passion yet tender love. The ardent labor bears fruit that is satisfying not only to Masih, the creator, but also to those who share the great pleasure of savoring the delectable fruit of his exhilarating art. Masih comes from a family of highly-prized and respected tile artisans of Esfahan (Isfahan), whose magic creations of indigo, turquoise, and cobalt blues have adorned the mosques and historical monuments of the city of Esfahan for centuries. Holding a torch in hand and a palpitating hope in heart, he illuminates the path to mystical Persian calligraphy>>>

از اینجا و آنجا

مطابق معمول هر سال، فیلم های ایرانی نیز در جشنواره لوکارنو حضور داشتند اما نه مانند سالهای پیش در بخش های اصلی یا مسابقه، بلکه در بخش های فرعی و هر سال که می گذرد از شمار آنها نیز کاسته می شود. در حالی که لوکارنو با شناساندن عباس کیارستمی به جهانیان، به سینمای ایران دلبسته شد، اکنون دیگر به نظر می رسد دوران طلایی سینمای جشنواره ای ایران به پایان رسیده است و دیگر چنته سینمای ایران که هر چه بیشتر در هزارتوی سانسور بی در و پیکر دولتی گرفتار آمده است، خالی مانده است.
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Scary and exciting

In late 2000, an Iranian homegrown alternative band, Sarakhs, made it's debute with the release of Mordab. Mordab and other singles such as Vasvaseh and Raz marked the beginning of a phenomenon called, Iranian underground music. Although Mordab never made it to the commercial arena, it became one of the most widely acclaimed Iranian Alternative albums on internet. Fortunately, Sarakhs' new work will not leave fans disappointed. It is Sarakhs at its best. A milestone in Iranian alternative music and an example of originality in sound and lyric. The new tracks showcase the band's talent and give the fans what they're looking for: something very different>>>

Understanding pain

After few screenings and revisions, Jalal Jonroy finally released his romantic comedy, David and Layla, to theaters. Like most of his fellow countrymen in Diaspora, Jonroy has not forgotten the unfair treatment of the people of his origin and remains devoted to their plight throughout the movie. To make his case more tangible by general public and entertainment industry in the West, he pairs another maltreated ethnic group with the people of his origin. Both ethnicities have remained preoccupied with their past traumas, fears, and prejudices. While one of them with a population of 15 millions has been represented by a modern state for the past few decades, the other with a population of 30 to 40 millions still remains stateless in the 21st century>>>

Good spirit

Done with watching the mega-budget summer movies: Harry Potter, Hairspray and Transformer? Now what about a small independent romantic comedy about a Jewish New Yorker in love with a Moslem-Kurd refugee? Interesting subject, isn’t it? David and Layla’s Kurdish director Jay Jonroy takes the monumental task of balancing the complexities of a cross-cultural love story against its political and religious contradictions. Two hours of cheery entertainment to discover that there really aren’t any contradictions after all. We have more similarities than differences>>>

2 films, 2 views

Ever since I saw FIREWORKS WEDNESDAY I have found myself increasingly discovering various layers of subtexts finding their way into my curious and analytical mind. Never before had the Iranian screen seen such fine performances as that of Hamid Farokh Nejad. If there was no improvisation involved whatsoever, then I have never seen such organic responses on screen or stage by a male actor. A psychological thriller? Hitchcokesc? Innovative? A social commentary? A non-judgmental account of life stories running parallel to each other?>>>

A Kiarostami day

At the Berkeley Art Museum a fan blew at one Kiarostami photograph. The rest of his works remained still--like the audience in a theater-- while this projected video of branches and leaves apparently swayed in the turbulence created by the fan. The famed film director had broadened me forever with awareness of the very air between the projector and the screen. Beware, those who would walk blithely into Abbas Kiarostami‚s mind, the door you entered through will be too small to let you back out.>>>