The Cow (1969 film)

The Cow (Persian: گاو‎, Gāv or Gav) is a 1969 Iranian film directed by Dariush Mehrjui, written by Gholam-Hossein Saedi based on his own play and novel, and starring Ezzatolah Entezami as Masht Hassan. Some critics consider it the first film of the Iranian New Wave.[1][2]

This article is about the 1969 Iranian film. For other films of this or similar names, see Cow (disambiguation) § Film and television.
The Cow
DVD cover
Directed byDariush Mehrjui
Produced byDariush Mehrjui
Written byDariush Mehrjui
Gholam Hossein Saedi
StarringEzzatolah Entezami
Firouz Behjat-Mohamadi
Mahmoud Dowlatabadi
Parviz Fannizadeh
Jamshid Mashayekhi
Ali Nassirian
Ezatallah Ramezanifar
Esmat Safavi
Jafar Vali
Music byHormoz Farhat
CinematographyFereydon Ghovanlou
Release date
  • 1969 (1969)
Running time
100 minutes
CountryIran
LanguagePersian

Plot

The story begins by showcasing the close relationship between a middle-aged Iranian villager Masht Hassan and his beloved cow. Hassan is married but has no children. His only valuable property is a cow that he cherishes as the only cow in the village. When Hassan must leave the village for a short time, the pregnant cow is found dead in the barn. Hassan's fellow villagers fear his reaction and cover up the evidence of the death and tell him upon his return that his cow has run away. Finding great difficulty confronting the loss of his beloved cow, as well the loss of livestock that affects his social stature at the village, Hassan gradually goes insane following a nervous breakdown and believes he is the cow, adopting such mannerisms as eating hay. His wife and the villagers try in vain to restore his sanity.

Cast
  • Ezzatollah Entezami as Masht Hasan
  • Mahin Shahabi as Masht Hasan's wife
  • Ali Nassirian as Masht Eslam
  • Jamshid Mashayekhi as Abbas
  • Firouz Behjat-Mohamadi
  • Jafar Vali as Kadkhoda (Village headman)
  • Khosrow Shojazadeh as young man
  • Ezzatollah Ramazanifar as madman
  • Esmat Safavi as old woman
  • Mahmoud Dowlatabadi as Esma'il
  • Parviz Fannizadeh
  • Mahtaj Nojoomi as Esma'il's sister[3]

Development

The Buyid prince Majd ad-Dawla was reported to have thought of himself as a cow. He was subsequently cured of his delusion by the medieval Persian physician Avicenna.[4] It is possible that elements of the plot of The Cow were inspired by this.

Reception

Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini was reported to have admired this film. This in turn was reported to have been the saving grace that allowed Iranian cinema to continue rather than being banned after the Iranian Revolution.[5]

Awards

Notes
  1. A different lens
  2. “The Cow” and the Birth of Iranian New Wave
  3. IMDb, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0064356/
  4. http://article.tebyan.net/72602/معالجه-کردن-بوعلی-سینا-آن-صاحب-مالیخولیا-را
  5. "The Cow « Thirtyframesasecond". Thirtyframesasecond.wordpress.com. 2008-11-13. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
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