The House is Black

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William L 01/23/2021 A landmark video essay that took a taboo subject, focusing on leprosy in a culture and time where it was still somewhat mysterious, feared, and its victims shunned, and demonstrating a fact that few wished to confront - the humanity of those who suffered from it. Rather than doubling down on the plight of its subject to elicit purely a sense of conventional pity, Farrokhzad showed them in acts of daily life, as people, and thus manages to elicit a far greater degree of empathy than a more conventional exploration of the subject could hope to (though it must be noted that at times it does slip to resorting to simple pathos, definitely the weaker regions of the film). Reinforced with narration of religious script and poetry, the director calls upon innate humanity to understand the conditions facing her subject as much as the nature of the physical conditions of lepers. A landmark of Iranian cinema, but really a universal film. (4.5/5) See more s r @ScottR 12/01/2020 1001 movies to see before you die. This 1963 film was powerful and well made for its time. It depicted those with disabilities and disfigurements in a moving way that sticks with you. It was on youtube. See more 10/24/2015 The images are sometimes too much to bear, inside this leper colony in Iran. Yet, they are somehow hauntingly beautiful and horrific at the same time. Your heart goes out to these outcasts, as you imagine the rejection they must have felt from the rest of humanity. However, the people here retain their dignity...through religion, through play, by the force of their spirit. They thank their god for having eyes to see and ears to hear, even if we as viewers dwell on their sores, their deformities, their exile. The editing here is fast (for the time) and we are besieged with images - some difficult to take, some uplifting, all humane. The voiceover is lyrical and poetic (not descriptive) and this elevates the film to something more than a stark look at a difficult situation. See more 08/03/2015 The House is Black surpasses the impression of "ugliness" surrounding its subjects -victims of leprosy - and upholds their humanity, their spirit, and their beauty. See more 04/13/2015 I watched a twenty minute version of this documentary. (There's a longer cut?) At any rate, this little film is astonishing. Depressing as hell but I guess that's the point. The directing and editing (both by the same guy) is remarkable to watch. This is one of the earliest known Iranian films and the way it unflinchingly looks at leprosy is bold and brave. Also, the irony of God and religion being such a prominent refuge is quite revealing. The Grand Illusion indeed. But I suppose humans need to invent something in order to cope. A powerful documentary nonetheless. See more 04/04/2015 I've never seen lepers, except briefly, in one or two photos in a textbook. It's amazing to think how long the world has been dealing with this, and how, until recently, the world societies would simply exile them to a colony. See more Read all reviews

The House is Black

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