Educational Media Reviews Online

The 1979 revolution in Iran swept the Shah from power and set up the first Islamic republic in modern times. This dissolution of the separation of church and state is still in effect in the country. The video Iran: Veiled Appearances features interviews both with those who firmly support the Iranian theocracy and those who are campaigning for more openness and democracy in Iran.

The video was shot in Iran by Belgian director Thierry Michel. Michel was able to tape scenes at an Islamic academy that offers paramilitary training to students who will enforce Islamic law. An instructor there says to be a martyr is “the height of pride” and adds, “We all hope to become martyrs when we defend ourselves.”

At another point in the video, a man defends the Iranian government from charges of dictatorship by saying a dictator is only interested in protecting his own personal interests, while the leader of Iran serves as a guide for living according to Islam, and hence is serving all the people. Those in an Islamic state are ruled by religion and law. It is the opposite of a dictatorship, he says.

But dissent against the Islamic state is not well-tolerated in Iran. Journalists have been imprisoned and newspapers closed because of material the government saw as being insulting to Islam and Islamic government. Assassination attempts have been made on dissidents, and some have succeeded. The video opens with the funeral of a writer that the narrator says was “murdered by cronies of the government.” Near the end of the video, a leading opposition spokesman who was wounded in an assassination attempt addresses a large crowd about governmental terrorism against those who dissent.

There’s an ironic twist to many of the interviews with those who want change. A man who was imprisoned for protesting against the Shah’s government has also been imprisoned by the Islamic leadership for his comments. He says he spent much of his youth in prison and now will probably spend much of his old age in prison, too.

Young people speak of their discontent with the present state of things. One woman says, “This country has nothing to offer me, neither spiritual nor material.” Their parents helped bring about the Islamic revolution, but the offspring do not share the passion their parents held when they were young. “There is nothing left for us,” one says, while another woman declares, “I can never forgive those who brought about the revolution.”

Although the President of Iran, Mohammad Khatami, is considered the leader of the country’s reform movement, the video says he has only token power. Ali Khamanei, the successor to Ayatollah Khomenei as religious head of state, controls all the institutions of government and is firmly in charge.

Since President George W. Bush called Iran part of the “axis of evil,” it would have been interesting for the video to offer more information about the activities of the Iranian government and express its view of the President’s statement. The fact that the video’s director is not American probably aided him greatly in gaining access to shoot in Iran, and the footage he has provided is informative, but an analysis of the Iranian government and any possible connection to Islamic terrorism is still needed.

Awards

• Grand Prize winner, Creation Documentary Festival (France)
• Joseph Plateau Prize for Best Belgian Documentary