Although Gaav (The Cow) was made in1969, its story of a tragedy in a small village could probably could have been set anytime in the last 5,000 years. At first, I thought the film might be a Fellini "Amacord" Iranian-style, a director's nostalgic look back at a simpler time and place, remembered from his childhood. But a better comparison might be "Sunset" (1927, Murnau): there is a timeless, eternal quality to the proceedings. These are not anyone's memories; instead, "Gaav" is a myth-like "universal" story.
Another point of reference is Sergei Paradjanov ("Color of Pomegranates", "Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors"), who used the techniques of experimental cinema to bring new life to ancient myths and folkways. Unfortunately it has to be said that the director of "Gaav", Dariush Mehrjui didn't demonstrate as much cinematic skill or imagination as Paradjanov, at least in this film. There's glaring technical problems in the film, surely due to production and direction: the numerous night shots are often too dark to decipher; sound levels vary wildly from inaudible to deafening; awkward staging and editing makes it hard to understand the space of action; a subplot about a young couple's courtship seems a fruitless distraction; direction and staging of groups of actors seems artificial and awkward.
Yet the director gets strong performances from his main actors, and the film does become deep and affecting. The scenes involving Hassan and his friend Eslam form the core of the film, and are memorably weird and tragic.
Hassan has an all-consuming, absolutely pure love for his cow. It is the center of his world; even his wife seems to barely register to him. When the cow dies, Hassan cannot cope with the loss. His world crumbles, he retreats into madness. The plot revolves around the village's attempts to care for and accommodate Hassan's outsized love and grief. At this, it fails. As we see from the film's opening scene, the village can be a place of casual cruelty. In the end, the village's well-intentioned intercessions become the very cause of the final tragedy.
The most pivotal moment in the plot occurs when Hassan's friend Eslam and three others attempt to deal with the grief-stricken Hassan, who has become dangerously disconnected from reality. In his psychosis, the group appears to Hassan as maurading raiders from an enemy village. This is the true tragedy of the tale: love can exist in a form so extreme and powerful that the social order can do nothing except kill it. In this case, one's friends and neighbors may unwittingly turn out to be one's executioners.
Another point of reference is Sergei Paradjanov ("Color of Pomegranates", "Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors"), who used the techniques of experimental cinema to bring new life to ancient myths and folkways. Unfortunately it has to be said that the director of "Gaav", Dariush Mehrjui didn't demonstrate as much cinematic skill or imagination as Paradjanov, at least in this film. There's glaring technical problems in the film, surely due to production and direction: the numerous night shots are often too dark to decipher; sound levels vary wildly from inaudible to deafening; awkward staging and editing makes it hard to understand the space of action; a subplot about a young couple's courtship seems a fruitless distraction; direction and staging of groups of actors seems artificial and awkward.
Yet the director gets strong performances from his main actors, and the film does become deep and affecting. The scenes involving Hassan and his friend Eslam form the core of the film, and are memorably weird and tragic.
Hassan has an all-consuming, absolutely pure love for his cow. It is the center of his world; even his wife seems to barely register to him. When the cow dies, Hassan cannot cope with the loss. His world crumbles, he retreats into madness. The plot revolves around the village's attempts to care for and accommodate Hassan's outsized love and grief. At this, it fails. As we see from the film's opening scene, the village can be a place of casual cruelty. In the end, the village's well-intentioned intercessions become the very cause of the final tragedy.
The most pivotal moment in the plot occurs when Hassan's friend Eslam and three others attempt to deal with the grief-stricken Hassan, who has become dangerously disconnected from reality. In his psychosis, the group appears to Hassan as maurading raiders from an enemy village. This is the true tragedy of the tale: love can exist in a form so extreme and powerful that the social order can do nothing except kill it. In this case, one's friends and neighbors may unwittingly turn out to be one's executioners.