As the introduction to Tehran Has No More Pomegranates declares, the film is “a musical, historical, comedy, docu-drama, love story, experimental film.â€This statement aptly captures the mish-mash of film footage, photographs, interviews, people and music that all together make up the subtle love-hate relationship that director Massoud Bakhshi has with his subject, Tehran.
The film follows the narrator’s unusual search for the most important thing in Tehran. His search, albeit seemingly innocent, offers an analysis of this crowded, polluted and congested city. In pointing out the various great things in Tehran for the coveted most important thing title, Bakhshi succeeds in highlighting the problems with this enormous city: cars, architecture, pollution, and even sheep are considered for the great prize. However, what makes this film appealing is its artful and comic critique. The director manages to infuse an innocence and naiveté into the piece that allows for an understated — but to the point — critique that is often humorous, as opposed to scathing and in-your-face.
This is a film of contrasts and comparisons. It uses images of a modern Tehran juxtaposed against archival footage of the early settlement of the area to show the evolution (and deterioration) of this megalopolis.This collage-type method makes for an interesting visual account the development of Tehran — a city the narrator likens to Tokyo, London, Paris, and New York. Like these great cities, Tehran suffers from congestion, overcrowding and urban sprawl. But unlike these great cities, Tehran is the victim of a haphazard building boom that has no appreciation of historical architecture, produces poor infrastructure, and amplifies the divide between rich and poor. The film is, in some ways, a lament for what Tehran has become. But in other ways, it is also a lament for what Tehran never was.
Tehran Has No More Pomegranates has its HOT DOCS premier today at 7:15 pm at the ROM. It will be showing again on April 24, 1:30 pm at Innis Town Hall.
Photo by Sharar Evron
