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“Life is color.”

Ever since the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran resulting in a drastic change in the country as a whole, its relationship to the world has always been troublesome to say the least. Leaving the political debates aside for a moment, its views on religious issues, women and culture have led to some rather schizophrenic works, for example, in the world of film. While directors such as Asghar Farhadi (“About Elly”) create works of social criticism, showing the state not as the antagonist of the story, but more like a silent, omnipresent entity influencing the lives of people, others have been censored and even put under house arrest. In his documentary “This Is Not a Film” (2011), Jafar Panahi shows how he deals with the ban of his films in his home country, the fears he and his family have to go through as an excruciating search for answers in...

A startlingly beautiful and occasionally moving experience, "Gabbeh" is 40-year-old Iranian director Mohsen Makhmalbaf's 13th feature in 15 years. A lyrical and often hypnotic fable with interwoven stories of nomadic life, the New Yorker release - in Farsi with English subtitles - will draw strongly from its target audience in select-site engagements.

After such contemporary, controversial and censored productions as "The Boycott", "The Cyclist," Salam Cinema" and "Bread and the Vase", Makhmalbaf initially set out to make a documentary about a tribe in the remote steppes of southeastern Iran. Combining footage shot on location and material added later, "Gabbeh" is relatively crude by domestic standards and a short 75 minutes, but it's otherwise accessible to Western audiences.

Intent on capturing a vanishing way of life, Makhmalbaf became fascinated by the centuries-old tradition of families creating elaborate carpets, or "gabbehs," that tell stories with pictorial artistry. Once known for his strong religious and political convictions and militant attitude, Makhmalbaf now "dislikes" most of his earlier work, and in some ways his new film is a cinematic gabbeh about going through changes.

The characters of "Gabbeh" are more iconographic than functional, but few scenes are conventional. The film is a celebration of nature, art, beauty and the power of love. It's rhythms are both natural and geometric, and the performances are stylized.

An old man (Hossein Moharami) and his wife (Roghieh Moharami) argue over washing their gabbeh when a beautiful young woman, aptly named Gabbeh (Shaghayegh Djodat), magically appears. The gorgeously attired Persian girl relates the story of her frustrating life in a wandering clan. A mysterious would-be lover always in the distance howls his desire for her, but family responsibilities come first.

In the process of retelling Gabbeh's romantic epic, the exotic milieu is captured with some success. One learns much about the making of gabbehs and gets a sense of the seasons and landscape.

GABBEH

New Yorker Films

Sanayeh Dasti D'Iran, MK2 Prods.

Writer-director Moshen Makhmalbaf

Producers Khalil Daroudchi, Khalil Mahmoudi

Director of photography Mahmoud Kalari

Editor Moshen Makhmalbaf

Music Hossein Alizadeh

Color/stereo

Cast:

Gabbeh Shaghayegh Djodat

Old Man Hossein Moharami

Roghieh Roghieh Moharami

Uncle Abbas Sayahi

Running time - 75 minutes

No MPAA rating...