A Review of Urban Images of Tehran in the Iranian Post-revolution Cinema

Abstract

Both metropolis and cinema are products of modernity. Since the end of the nineteenth century, the fortunes of cinema and the city have been inextricably linked on a number of levels, and it can be said that cinema, space and place need each other for self-description. First images of cities in the movies almost coincided with the birth of cinema and after a little time, all major cities in the world were shown in movies so that perhaps the social and physical changes in cities such as Berlin, Paris, Rome and cities of the United States can be reviewed through cinema along with other sources. This association was so strong that a new genre was born in the cinema: the ‘city film’ or ‘urban symphony ’. Subjects such as alienation, population growth, mass storage, informal settlements, urban semiotics etc. repeatedly and in different time periods have been displayed in movies. An analysis of a filmic representation of a city begins with observing how individual films represent the conditions of that city or its neighbourhoods in a specific historic moment, and then moves beyond seeing the film as mere representation of social reality to focus on how the cinematic text constructs and comments on those conditions. Any analysis of a city film can begin with an examination of the primary urban spaces portrayed in the film. How are spaces staged and linked or not linked to other spaces in the city? How are interior and exterior spaces, public and private spaces, defined? How do spaces reflect the social reality of race, class, and gender? In the recent decades Tehran has been the major location of Iranian films. The city has been analysed, sometimes as a context for the story and sometimes as the main theme of the film. The purpose of this chapter is a review of urban images of Tehran using Iranian films since 1980s until today. Accordingly, some movies are selected based on their themes of presenting urban problems and their relationship with Tehran, and then, the Tehran cityscape is reviewed through their perspectives. The chapter does this by focusing on the most important urban concerns reflected in movies.