Mohammad Rasoolollah

I have never left a review before, but after watching this movie in theaters (I am an international student in Iran) I really wanted to express my joy at it. The visuals and sound in the movie surprised me right from the get go; I did not expect them to be this good. There were perhaps some minor areas where there could have been some improvements (more post-production and editing related), but other than that it is definitely a must watch. I hope they get really professional dubbing or sub-titling done, as a lot of non-Persian speakers will be interested in watching this movie.

In terms of the story line, the movie tried to be as honest as possible - avoiding any blatant Shia-Sunni differences. It claimed to make use of historical reports that are famously accepted by both the sects and it more or less seems to have lived up to it.

Majidi is a king within the realm of art film, and he sure faced immense challenges managing the first Iranian cinematic project of this scale. The film immerses the audience in an orchestra of beautiful colors, Majidi's specialty, and an outpouring of sublime tunes. Juxtaposed with masterful cinematography of Storaro (although occasionally overdone), Majidi delivers imagery that satisfies aesthetic palates superbly.

The historical period drama, said to be the first part of a trilogy, focuses on prophet Muhammad's childhood. It is of note that, the filmmaker, working within the confines of Islamic conventions, cannot show Muhammad's face, which undeniably renders the project formidable. Hence, the point of view must be shifted, the story must unfold from distributed viewpoints, that must gel together skillfully in order to retain coherence. Though the story does justice vis-à-vis this challenge, it is far from perfection; the script does not mesh well with the visual artistry. The second act is stale, and the last act, though adequate, could be substantially improved. The CGI was noticeably weak; understandable, since it was the very first experience Iranian cinema went through, but still, within the given bounds, could be trimmed down and could easily be improved significantly. This evinces an odd feature of this film: the sense of perfectionism in this film is oddly inconsistent; some parts are perfected masterfully with amazing care, and a few are not even average. In addition to the CGI, the voice of Muhammad is an illustrative example: letting alone professional actors, I am sure that even among Iranian children doing TV commercials there are who are by far better voice actors, both in terms of enunciation and acting, than the kid chosen in this film for the role of Muhammad. What happened to the sense of perfection of the whole team there, I am not sure.

The film strives towards Shia-Sunni neutrality, and succeeds remarkably---unless viewed with absolute cynicism (anything can be deemed as biased if viewed from that lens). The focus is predominantly on the commonalities of the Shia-Sunni accounts, and the chosen story time---Muhammad's childhood---is certainly helpful towards that end. All in all, the film can be best characterized as "promising" (especially when held against the technological status quo of the Iranian cinema) regarding the potentials of cinema for engendering harmony and peace in our ominous and volatile times. It is definitely a must-see.

8 years after his last film , once again Majid Majidi has done it.this time with the cooperation of some big names behind the camera. he has made a great film about the childhood of the holy profit , Muhammad.

the story is told in different episodes just like the way Quran tells stories , but here episodes don,t match perfectly and it could be more integrated.

the cinematography is one of the best i have ever seen.it seems that the camera flies everywhere along with the young hero.watching this film is just like watching beautiful paintings in a gallery.

the whole city is actually made in real size and it takes us to 7th CAD. the visual effects ,also is believable and beautifully illustrates a story told in Quran.

the best aspect of the film seems to be the music, made by A.R Rahman. it is really unique and impressive. 3 hours is too much for this drama and it could be shorter.

after all, this is a great film to watch. it,s just a long lovely poem.

This movie is in a class of its own. It is a feast for the senses: like a work of art, a painting, or a poem. It is a gentle breeze of fresh air, in a lonely, nonspiritual world. Unlike anything I had experienced before, in the venue in which I saw the film, the majority of viewers broke down in tears of awe at least once during the showing. You could see people shed tears all around. One lady nearby let out whimpers all along, as the film was just too strong for her to control her emotions. Amazing. Just a note for the producers if they ever read this: I wish that after all 3 parts are released, the entire trilogy is shortened into one single film for those who do not have the patience to sit through a 10 hour marathon (of all 3 parts). I think for an impatient viewer, joining all 3 parts into a 2-3 hour movie would be an excellent fit.

Muhammad: The Messenger of God (2015) is an Iranian film written and directed by Majid Majidi. Cinematography was by Vittorio Storaro. Dryden Theatre of Rochester's George Eastman Museum has been honoring Vittorio Storaro, and that's how we were able to to see this movie. (The DVD was Storaro's own personal copy.)

Another reviewer has called this film, "A must-see feast of beautiful colors and tunes." That is absolutely correct. The screen is filled with color and action. The music is beautiful. The acting is outstanding. (We are never shown Muhammad's face, out of respect for Islamic tradition.) We see elephants, camels, horses, and sheep. Director Majidi gives us (literally) a cast of thousands. The desert scenery is spectacular.

Everything works, except that the actual facts about Muhammad's childhood are scarce. Director Majidi concentrates on miracles that Muhammad performs as a child. I've read a fair amount about Islam, and I've never seen any emphasis placed on Muhammad having supernatural powers when he was young. Muhammad was an orphan, and his life was challenging. Some of what was shown is probably historically correct, but I think most of it arose in the mind of writer Majidi.

One major problem for me is that the film is virulently anti-Semitic. As I understand it, Jews weren't involved in Muhammad's life. He accepted the God of Abraham, and he is considered by Muslims to be that God's true and last prophet. However, any violence he encountered was from opposing tribes, not from Jews. Maybe director Majidi is anti-Semitic. My guess is that this was the price he had to pay for the freedom to make this film in Iran.

The movie is three hours long. The good news is that it was never boring. The bad news is that it may have only a tangential bearing on the life of the Prophet Muhammad.