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Kandahar Mohsen Makhmalbaf Inspired by true events, this powerful film from Iranian director Mohsen Makhmalbaf tells the story of an Afghan-born Canadian journalist's return to Afghanistan in order to find her sister, who has lost both legs to a landmine and threatened to kill herself in three days. During her frantic search, she sees firsthand the destruction and injustice that her homeland and its people have endured at the hands of the Taliban government. The winner of the Ecumenical Jury Prize at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival, this film is a breathtaking and moving portrayal of a country oppressed. "Kandahar has the immediacy and authenticity of a documentary and the poetry of a strong dramatic feature" (Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle). The DVD is letterboxed and includes commentary track by Nelofer Pazira, stills gallery, a documentary, original theatrical trailers and more. In Farsi and English with English subtitles. Iran, 2001, 85 mins. DVD | $44.95
The Actor Mohsen Makhmalbaf In this wild comedy of marital discord, a popular film actor who idolizes Chaplin is thrown into an odd love triangle by his wife, who, unable to have a child, insists he take a second wife--a mute Gypsy girl--to provide them with a baby. The proposed arrangement makes life even more unsettling for the actor, already dissatisfied with the mindless films he makes to support the family's wealthy and ultra-modern lifestyle. "...a comic allegory about the rift between traditional and contemporary Iran, in which class differences and cultural differences are equally pertinent" (Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader). In Farsi with English subtitles. Iran 1993 88 mins. Videocassette | $44.95
Boycott Mohsen Makhmalbaf Mohsen Makhmalbaf's fourth feature draws upon his own painful experience as a young man imprisoned for his rebellious political actions. Majid Majidi, a respected director in his own right (Children of Heaven, The Color of Paradise), plays Valeh, an activist sentenced to death who begins to doubt the ideas for which he is condemned. "...a highly energetic and troubled account of a leftist guerrilla's arrest in Iran prior to the Islamic revolution and his experience in prison...the film records Makhmalbaf's disenchantment with politics as well as his growing confidence as a craftsman" (Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader). In Farsi with English subtitles. Iran 1985 85 mins. Videocassette | $44.95
The Cyclist Mohsen Makhmalbaf A visually sophisticated film which deals with the themes of man's exploitation of man and the inequities between rich and poor. The cyclist is Nassim, an Afghan refugee in need of money to pay his wife's medical expenses. With work difficult to come by, a sleazy promoter suggests he undertake a bicycle marathon. Touting him as the Afghani superman, the huckster wagers that Nassim will circle a small area on the outskirts of town, day and night, for a week. Gamblers, bookies and food vendors gather to watch the desperate cyclist from the sidelines, turning his suffering to their own profit. Winner of the Best Film at the Riminicinema Film Festival. Farsi with English subtitles. Iran 1989 75 mins. DVD | $44.95
Gabbeh Mohsen Makhmalbaf A beautiful young woman emerges from a woven illustration to tell her story of romantic longing in this visually stunning film by Mohsen Makhmalbaf (Once Upon a Time, Cinema), one of the most popular Iranian films to play abroad. Makhmalbaf's gorgeous imagery is truly captivating. "Color has rarely been used so sumptuously" (Richard Corliss, Time Magazine). In Farsi with English subtitles. Iran/France 1996 75 mins. DVD | $44.95
Images from the Qajar Dynasty/The School Blown Away by the Wind Mohsen Makhmalbaf Two short films written, directed and edited by Mohsen Makhmalbaf, one of Iran's leading filmmakers. Images from the Qajar Dynasty (1993, 18 mins.) was made while Makhmalbaf was working on his acclaimed feature Once Upon a Time, Cinema. It is a fascinating documentary that uses rare photos and early film footage shot during that late nineteenth and early 20th centuries at the Shah's court, along with family portraits and fabulous tile mosaics. This snippet of the past reflects the director's great interest in and extensive research of the era. The School Blown Away by the Wind (1996, 8 mins.) is set in the school for nomad children seen in Makhmalbaf's Gabbeh. In this brief, humanist tale, an old man enters the improvised classroom to revisit memories of his youth. In Farsi with English subtitles. Iran 1993/1996 26 mins. Videocassette | $44.95
Marriage of the Blessed Mohsen Makhmalbaf One of the most controversial works of Iranian cinema, Marriage of the Blessed is a brilliant depiction of the impact of war on the soul of the individual. A veteran of the Iran-Iraq war struggles to adjust to civilian life when he returns to his job as a photo-journalist. He sinks into depression as he documents the dark and desperate side of life. With his health beginning to suffer, his fiancee tries to lift his spirit by hastening their wedding plans, but her family's disapproval turns the matter into yet another battle. The film's honest depiction of the personal price of war was viewed by some authorities as damaging to the public's inspirational memories of the Islamic revolution. "A deeply unsettling work which examines the legacy of war with uncommon insight" (Piers Handling, Toronto International Film Festival). In Farsi with English subtitles. Iran 1989 70 mins. Videocassette | $44.95
A Moment of Innocence Mohsen Makhmalbaf In his youth, Iranian auteur Mohsen Makhmalbaf was imprisoned for stabbing policeman Mirhadi Tayebi during a political protest. Decades later, following his release from prison, Makhmalbaf was stunned to meet Tayebi again--this time at an audition for one of his films. Makhmalbaf utilizes this strange twist of events for this wry, metafilmic masterpiece, in which he and Tayebi act as actors in a reconstruction of the event that changed the course of their lives. "By thoroughly confusing fiction and documentary, personal history and personal fantasy, A Moment of Innocence becomes a heady exploration of memory, personal associations, and multiple realities" (Stephen Holden, The New York Times). The DVD is letterboxed and includes essay by critic Godfrey Cheshire and trailer. In Farsi with English subtitles. Iran 1996 78 mins. DVD | $44.95
Once Upon a Time, Cinema Mohsen Makhmalbaf A wonderful, fairy tale-like comedy set during the Qajar dynasty, which is a condensed history of Iranian cinema and a love letter to the cinema in general, by the talented and controversial Mohsen Makhmalbaf (The Peddler, Gabbeh). The film tells the story of a Charlie Chaplin-like cinematographer who introduces the magic of movies to the Persian court. The Shah has 84 wives and 200 children, but after a screening he falls desperately in love with the film's heroine. Farsi with English subtitles. Iran 1992 100 mins. Videocassette | $44.95
The Peddler Mohsen Makhmalbaf Shockingly forthright in its view of the social and economic problems of the post-Shah era, The Peddler uses a different cameraman and different style for each of three short tales set among the poor of contemporary Tehran. The first episode follows a kindly but naive couple who want someone to adopt their newborn daughter. The second, an astonishing mix of absurdist comedy and the supernatural, concerns a mentally unstable man who lives with his mother in a ramshackle apartment. The final section draws on the American gangster film to show the last hours of a peddler suspected of betraying his friends. Farsi with English subtitles. Iran 1986 95 mins. Videocassette | $44.95
The Silence Mohsen Makhmalbaf In this poetic feature from one of Iran's greatest directors, a 10-year-old blind boy travels to the market each day, where he works as a musical instrument tuner. The boy's gift for sound extends well beyond this duty, as he hears the music of life all around him. "Makhmalbaf crafts the boy's world as a flip-book of gorgeous, lyrical images...Makhmalbaf sees audiovisual magic as an alloy, which stretches the bounds of the naturalism he is using in the name of a purely sensory experience" (Wesley Morris, San Francisco Examiner). The DVD is letterboxed and includes essay by critic Armond White and trailer. In Farsi with English subtitles. Iran 1998 75 mins. DVD | $44.95
Stardust Stricken--Mohsen Makhmalbaf: A Portrait Houshang Golmakani This video documentary is a perfect introduction to the works of controversial Iranian filmmaker Mohsen Makhmalbaf (Once Upon a Time, Cinema; Gabbeh), as well as an insightful look at his life experiences for those already familiar with his films. Born in poverty in Tehran, Makhmalbaf's youth was marked by constant work to support his family and early clandestine political activity. Shot and arrested during a struggle with a policeman, he spent four years in prison--an experience that would later inspire his film Boycott. Upon his release he fully embraced literature and film, beginning a career that would earn international attention. In this portrait by the respected Iranian film critic Houshang Golmakani, Makhmalbaf speaks about his life, his work, and his beliefs about art, cinema, violence, kindness, God, religion and death. In Farsi with English subtitles. Iran 1996 70 mins. Videocassette | $44.95
