Source:
Iran Times
|
Golshifteh Farahani |
The Iranian actress who plays Leonardo
DiCaprio's love interest in the just-released film "Body of Lies" says despite
being "totally in love with Iran," she will not return home where she may face
charges for appearing in the film without government permission.
According to The New York Daily News,
Golshifteh Farahani, 25, is the first Iran-based actress to appear in a
Hollywood film since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Iranian officials reportedly
are investigating whether she violated Islamic law by being in the movie, in
which some of the scenes show her without hejab.
But in the film, which
stars DiCaprio and Russell Crowe, Farahani's character, Aisha, is a modest Arab
nurse who treats DiCaprio's injuries but is wary of his advances and insists he
first meet her family. She won't even shake hands with DiCaprio as he leaves a
lunch date with her.
Farahani appeared at the
New York red-carpet premiere of the film last Sunday dressed in a sleeveless
designer dress and bare curly hair.
According to The
Washington Post, in the past week there have been heated debates among Iranian
bloggers between those who label the Iranian actress as a sell-out and those who
support her decision.
"When I saw those
pictures, I was disgusted," Mahdavi, an Iranian blogger who describes himself as
a religious student, said. "It was obvious from her frolicking that she had
lost all sense of respectability."
But Ali, another
blogger, wrote, "Everybody is free to live as they like. What's it to you?!"
Blogger Behzad wrote,
"The hejab is only valuable when it's chosen, and not forced. Learn that we
shouldn't be totalitarian. No one can force people to have or not to have hejab.
Remember this."
Farahani told the Daily
News, "I had a lot of problems because of this movie. [Iranian officials] took
my passport. The intelligence service interrogated me several times. In the end,
the judge said, 'We have to see the movie and then decide what we're going to do
with you.'"
Farahani said her
passport has been returned to her, but she fears what might happen if she goes
back to Iran.
"I'm on trial," the
actress, who has been living in France with her husband, told the Daily News.
"I'm totally in love with Iran. I have family there. But now, if they want to
see me, they have to leave," the actress who lived in Iran until August said.
"I'm going to stay
here," she said. "I lost one opportunity to do a screen test, for 'The Prince
of Persia.' I'm not ready for that again."
Farahani is not the
first Iranian woman to appear without hejab in America. Nobel peace laureate
Shirin Ebadi defended her decision to appear without hejab by stating that the
Iranian Constitution does not require Iranian women to cover their heads when
they are abroad.
The hardline daily
Kayhan reported that Farahani's scarf-free appearance in the film was part of a
conspiracy in an article headlined, "The cinema mafia takes female actress to
America." The article claimed Farahani was forced to appear without hejab.
"They have forced her to
appear in front of cameras without hejab and in inappropriate clothing. They
immediately published the pictures on websites. Western groups try to break the
taboo of being without a headscarf," the newspaper wrote.
Meanwhile, a new Iranian film
in which Farahani stars is scheduled to be released soon. But several
government supporters have demanded that the film, entitled "Darbareh Elli," be
banned in Iran.
Body of Lies
is a film directed by Ridley Scott and adapted from a 2007 novel by The
Washington Post's David Ignatius's about a CIA operative, Roger Ferris-played by
DiCaprio-who uncovers a lead on a major terrorist leader operating out of
Jordan.
Espionage Thriller 'Body
of Lies' Questions Terror War Ideology
Reviews of the film were
varied. Some praised it for a "sophisticated line of thinking" while others
panned it as yet another tired film about "good" American agents chasing "bad"
Muslim terrorists across the Middle East, pointing to recent films with similar
plots such as "Syriana," "Rendition" and "The Kingdom."
The film was released last week
and came in third in U.S. box office receipts this past weekend, behind "Beverly
Hills Chihuahuas" and "Quarantine."
About Iran Times:
The Iran Times is an
independent newspaper with no affiliation with any political party or faction
The Iran Times corporation was founded in Washington D.C. in 1970, in accordance
with U.S. federal and local regulations:
www.iran-times.com
... Payvand News - 10/20/08 ... --
