Film on Prophet Muhammad draws flak

Published Mar 27, 2015

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Here in this Persian replica of Mecca, an Iranian film company is attempting to offer the world a literal glimpse of the Prophet Muhammad despite traditional taboos against it.

The movie Muhammad, Messenger of God already recalls the grandeur – and expense – of a Cecil B DeMille film, with the narrow alleyways and a replica Kaaba shrine built in the village of Allahyar. But by even showing the back of the Prophet Muhammad as a child before he was called upon by Allah, the most expensive film in Iranian history already has been criticised before its even released, calling into question who ultimately will see the Quranic story come to life on the big screen.

“How should we introduce our prophet?” asked Majid Majidi, the film’s director.

In American cinematic history, films involving the Bible often find the biggest box office returns.

But in Islam, portraying the Prophet Muhammad has long been taboo. Islamic tradition is full of written descriptions of Muhammad and his qualities – describing him as the ideal human being. But clerics generally have agreed that trying to depict that ideal is forbidden.

But while Sunni Islam, the religion’s dominant branch, widely rejects any depictions of Muhammad, his close relatives or companions, Shiite Islam doesn’t. In Shiite Iran and other countries, posters, banners, jewellery and even keychains bear the images of Muhammad’s son-in-law Ali, revered by Shiites who see him as the prophet’s rightful successor. The late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomenei, who led Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution and later became the country’s supreme leader, reportedly even kept a picture similar to young Muhammad in his room for years.

In the new film, the story focuses on Muhammad’s childhood, never showing his face. The movie instead uses others to tell his story, like his grandfather Abdul-Muttalib, portrayed by Iranian actor Ali Reza Shoja Nouri.

By making a high-quality film, Majidi said it will give the world the right impression about the Prophet Muhammad. He blamed Islamic extremists and the West for sullying the image of a pillar of faith for 1.5-billion people across the world.

 

Yet, the film already has seen wide-spread criticism even before being widely released, largely from predominantly Sunni Arab countries. In February, Egypt’s Al-Azhar, one of Sunni Islam’s most prestigious seats of learning, called on Iran to ban a film it described as debasing the sanctity of messengers from God.

So far, the film appears to have the support of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s current supreme leader, who attended an inauguration of the film’s set in 2012.

Iranian film critics generally have praised the film. However, critic Masoud Farasati dismissed some of the film’s shots as a “Hollywood” knockoff.

Producers plan to release the film in Arabic, Persian and English, with showings across Iran and abroad. And if this film is successful, its producers say they hope to film two sequels, one focusing on Muhammad’s life from his teenage years to his 40s and another after 40 when he became the prophet of Islam.

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