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Gaav (1969)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Dariush Mehrjui (writer)
Gholam-Hossein Saedi (play)
Release Date:
December 1974 (USA) more
Plot:
Masht Hassan owns the only cow in a remote and desolate village. He treats the cow as his own child... more | add synopsis
Awards:
1 win more
User Comments:
The Cow more (10 total)
Cast
(Credited cast) | Ezzatolah Entezami | ... | Masht Hassan |
| Ali Nassirian | ... | Islam |
| Jamshid Mashayekhi | ... | Abbas |
| Khosrow Shojazadeh | ... | Boy |
| Jafar Vali | ... | Kadkhoda |
| Ezatallah Ramezanifar | ||
| rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
| Firouz Behjat-Mohamadi | ||
| Mahmoud Dowlatabadi | ||
| Parviz Fanizadeh | ||
| Esmat Safavi | ||
| Mahin Shahabi | ||
Additional Details
Also Known As:
The Cow
more
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
105 min
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Fun Stuff
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Nassereddin Shah, Actor-e Cinema (1992) more
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This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (10 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Gaav (1969)| Recent Posts (updated daily) | User |
|---|---|
| What struck you about 'The Cow' or 'Gaav'? | rudradev64 |
| UK DVD release? | andynortonuk |
Recommendations
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| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| IMDb Drama section | IMDb Iran section | Add this title to MyMovies |
The Cow, Gaav (1969) is the second feature film by director Dariush Mehrjui. It was the second film to be financed by the Shah of Iran but promptly banned after completion when the Shah felt its portrayal of simple village life in Iran gave the wrong impression to outsiders. The film was smuggled out of Iran in 1970, and subsequently won "critics choice" at the Venice Film Festival.
The Cow (originating from a novel by Iranian author Gholam-Hossein Saedi) portrays the obsession, loss of faith and demise of a poor rural village that loose their single salable commodity - a cow. Hassan, played by Ezatollah Entezami (who received best actor at the Chicago Film Festival), has a face that vividly captures his physical and emotional change after a breakdown when he becomes the cow. Mehrjui uses theater actors with "compelling faces" as key elements in the cinematography (Feridun Ghovanlu), as did the Italian Neo-realist.
The film explores the looming fear of a foreign invader as the villagers come to believe Hassan, in his cow-like state, will be captured in cross-border raids from rival tribes. Politically this is reminiscent of the Shah's constant allusions to the neighboring "Arab threat" over oil.
While set in traditional, rural Iran, Mehrjui shows an alternative view of Iran where collective fear and poverty can cycle in hopeless desperation. Viewers of The Cow are left to question the very root of human dignity.