Kamalolmolk

This is a lyrical, pleasantly hypnotic film about the life and times of one of the greatest Persian painters, Kamal ol Molk. The events in the movie happen as if in a dream, while following the tumultuous events of the first half of twentieth century in Iran through the eyes of the great painter. Kings come, kings go, and the weak but likable Ghajar dynasty monarchs are replaced by the rather brutal, pragmatic strongman Reza Pahlavi. The slow, rather passive, "old world" ambiance of the old system is replaced by a new, harsh, modern reality so alienating that the painter is reduced to threatening to cut off both his hands so he is not forced to put this new order of things on canvas. He retreats to the old world, and rediscovers beauty. I just wish the movie had put more of the master's paintings in context. While we see the settings in which some of his canvases are painted, there is not much reference to the rest of his body of work. Overall, I found it an enjoyable movie.