Hey folks, Harry here... Right now one of the world's most fascinating and most vital centers of powerful filmmaking is IRAN. When walking into very serious film going circles, the new 'in' thing is Iranian cinema... and has been for about 3-5 years now. Middle Eastern film is something we don't hear too much about... and when we do, it is an occasional Israeli film (of which I've seen many great ones thanks to the Austin Film Society), but Iranian Film is very hard to see... as a film goer it is you that must seek it out, not the other way around. So much film comes to you... you see it pushed on billboards, hear its siren's call upon your radio and watch its hypnotic swirling lines on screens both tiny and large. However, Iranian film... it has no such budget. Studios... even the independents don't seem to be willing to take a chance on Iranian film... but for the daring adventurous filmgoers out there... it's Indiana Jones time... you must put on the leather coat... and do your research because there are many fantastic moments ahead for you. You should be able to find Abbas Kiarostami's TASTE OF CHERRY out there... Perhaps that will be the first taste you need... That is all it took to grab me.

THE WIND WILL CARRY US (Iran, 1999)

Iranian films are getting fashionable. At this year's Cannes festival, 20-year-old Samira Makhmalbaf's BLACKBOARDS scooped up the Jury Prize, while two other Iranian films, Hassan Yektapanah's DJOMEH and Bahman Ghobadi's A TIME FOR DRUNKEN HORSES, gave the country the Camera d'Or. While these films don't appear to have been shown anywhere outside festivals yet, a slightly older Iranian film which took the Jury Prize and Press Prize at Venice '99 is going the rounds in European arthouses, and will be released in British cinemas next week. It's called THE WIND WILL CARRY US and it's worth a look.

THE WIND WILL CARRY US is a non-political, non-religious tale of openness, discovery and acceptance set in a maze-like village in rural Kurdistan. One day, three men from Tehran arrive in the village and check into a guesthouse. Two of the men stay inside for most of the film; the third, a modern urbanite who seems rather out of place in the village, goes out to mingle with the locals. Among those he befriends is a young boy whom he presses for information on a dying old lady. As the days go by, it becomes obvious that the man is looking forward to the woman's death. One doesn't find out until the end of the film why he's so keen on her death; in the meantime, one has all sorts of suspicions about fortune hunting, dark pasts, and other things which seem incongruous with the man's character. Meanwhile, the man keeps meeting locals, and he gradually comes to 'bond' with them in a way that changes his life and his ideas on what matters and what doesn't.

THE WIND WILL CARRY US was directed by Abbas Kiarostami, whose previous effort, TASTE OF CHERRY, took the Palme d'Or at Cannes '97. It's a pretty piece of direction, which becomes even more impressive when one realises that Kiarostami used just one professional actor (Behzad Dourani, playing the phone-toting Tehranian). Dourani excels, conveying his character's ambiguity (is he an unsympathetic opportunist or a driven man who just happens to be a bit insensitive?) with flair. The rest of the cast, locals of the Kurdish village where the film was shot, are equally impressive. They may not be as 'natural' as the amateur cast Zhang Yimou employed in NOT ONE LESS, but they are convincing enough to give the film a very nice and authentic flavour.

THE WIND WILL CARRY US is an interesting film for many reasons. The story itself may not be earth- shattering, but Kiarostami's film-making has an originality one doesn't come across too often. His main device is that of repetition. Rather than leaving out seemingly insignificant events, as Western directors tend to do, Kiarostami repeats them over and over again, thus giving them a comical quality. In THE WIND WILL CARRY US, the recurring event is the protagonist's mobile phone ringing and his jumping into his car in order to answer the call. It so happens that the village is situated in a valley where the signal is weak, and the only way for the protagonist to answer calls is to drive a mile to the nearest hilltop, where the signal is stronger. Thus, whenever the phone rings, the man gets in his car, crosses some dusty roads and picturesque fields, and answers his call, afterwards exchanging a few words (sometimes philosophical, sometimes very prosaic) with a guy who's digging a hole on the hilltop.

The repetitive device is both entertaining and annoying. The first time it's used, one laughs, amused as one is at the notion of a mobile phone ringing in this remote corner of Kurdistan. The second and third time it occurs, one grins because one knows what is coming and looks forward to seeing what twist Kiarostami will give it this time (the GROUNDHOG DAY effect). By the fourth time the phone rings, the novelty has worn off, and one finds oneself wondering whether Kiarostami really sent his actor up the hill four times or whether he's using the same footage each time. Those uphill rides look remarkably similar.

There are other interesting flourishes, as well. For starters, the film is very poetical. The protagonist at one stage recites a poem by Forough Farrokhzad (the closing line to which gave the film its title), which, depending on your literary tastes, is either an interesting insertion of local colour or a bewildering bit of boredom. Either way, one is constantly aware he's watching a poetic film. Secondly, there is a bit of symbolism, mostly involving turtles and bugs. Finally, there is the fact that about half of the characters remain invisible. While we hear the voices of the protagonist's friends and the man digging the hole, we never get to see their faces; nor do we meet the dying old lady, who is represented by her window and the relatives who bring her food. It's a bit alienating at first, but it allows one to exercise his imagination, which is nice.

THE WIND WILL CARRY US is one of those films which answers a few questions but evokes a whole lot of others. As such it is unsuitable for people who like their stories clear-cut. Experienced arthouse snobs will be delighted by this anthropological peek into Middle Eastern life, though, and the film also makes excellent research material for movie-makers interested in novel ways of presenting their stuff. It works best, however, as a two-hour commercial for rural Iran. If you've ever considered going on holiday to Iran (who hasn't?), this film will make you want to book a flight straight away. It may not boast footage of Ispahan or Persepolis or any of the other Iranian tourist traps, but there's plenty of other enticing stuff left. I, for one, can't wait to see myself walking in those fields... or those picturesque labyrinthine villages full of flowers and tea houses... But then, I am not your average film fan.

The Lovely Elaine