Abstract
This is a study of images of the cleric in contemporary Iranian comedy-drama films, namely Lizard (Marmulak, 2004) and Scandal (Rosvayi, 2013). Both films employ comedic methods in conveying their messages while providing a taboo-breaking criticism of sharia-minded individuals in Iranian society. Despite this sharp criticism, both comedy-drama films have religious messages that make the films Islamic/Islamicate and acts of commanding the good and forbidding the wrong (amr-e beh mar’ruf va-nahy az monkar). These two films are chosen for this study because of their popularity and their many shared features, such as the portrayal of the image of the cleric as a protector. The main character of both films commits theft and is attempting to escape, only to be protected by a cleric and the cloak of the cleric. I start this study by showing that these two films' creators are connected to some of the creators of eight other contemporary Iranian films (from 2004 to 2014) that portray the cleric as a main character. I then analyze the comedic features of the films that are interestingly linked to the segregation in Iranian society. I show how the segregated groups, from conservative religious to "liberal" individuals, interact in the films and occasionally cause humorous reactions and scandalous events. Filming techniques, such as colors, lighting, and camera angles, highlight the separation between the characters. Moreover, both films are social commentaries on social injustices portrayed in the two films. The films' social commentaries extend from criticism of certain clerics to criticism of certain characteristics of the sharia-minded and judgmental individuals in the society. Both films have cause-effect narratives due to a series of coincidences that could be perceived as magical, divine, or religious. Both films' narratives employ typological figurations as sophisticated methods to tell/retell religious stories. For example, Lizard portrays a scene that reminds the viewer of the Quranic story of Adam in the Garden. And, Scandal tells a story similar to the famous legend of Mir Damad (d. 1631), who is said to have burnt his fingers to stop his temptations from sleeping with a princess who had sought refuge in his home. Both Lizard and Scandal portray the image of the cleric as a protector who knows what others will realize at the end. However, the films show that the respect clerics receive in Iran is conditional.
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