Muhammad: The Messenger of God (2015) is an Iranian film written and directed by Majid Majidi. Cinematography was by Vittorio Storaro. Dryden Theatre of Rochester's George Eastman Museum has been honoring Vittorio Storaro, and that's how we were able to to see this movie. (The DVD was Storaro's own personal copy.)
Another reviewer has called this film, "A must-see feast of beautiful colors and tunes." That is absolutely correct. The screen is filled with color and action. The music is beautiful. The acting is outstanding. (We are never shown Muhammad's face, out of respect for Islamic tradition.) We see elephants, camels, horses, and sheep. Director Majidi gives us (literally) a cast of thousands. The desert scenery is spectacular.
Everything works, except that the actual facts about Muhammad's childhood are scarce. Director Majidi concentrates on miracles that Muhammad performs as a child. I've read a fair amount about Islam, and I've never seen any emphasis placed on Muhammad having supernatural powers when he was young. Muhammad was an orphan, and his life was challenging. Some of what was shown is probably historically correct, but I think most of it arose in the mind of writer Majidi.
One major problem for me is that the film is virulently anti-Semitic. As I understand it, Jews weren't involved in Muhammad's life. He accepted the God of Abraham, and he is considered by Muslims to be that God's true and last prophet. However, any violence he encountered was from opposing tribes, not from Jews. Maybe director Majidi is anti-Semitic. My guess is that this was the price he had to pay for the freedom to make this film in Iran.
The movie is three hours long. The good news is that it was never boring. The bad news is that it may have only a tangential bearing on the life of the Prophet Muhammad.
