The Song of Sparrows

        I loved this movie, which you may not believe since it took me so long to blog about it.
       The characters' actions often rang so true in this story. The way the boys were racing around and having a great time delivering flowers reminded me of my brothers and me bringing in groceries, and how the kids ran to their mom when they were in trouble is so true. I especially liked how the dad was always calling his oldest "my girl" and "my beautiful girl". That's my dad.
      In fact, the characters in this movie were so familiar that it left me wondering if this movie was actually made for Iranians or Westerners. But I suppose Majidi made it for whoever would watch it.
      Now, I say the characters' actions ring true, but not the characters, because really, I didn't find the characters believable half the time. I guess that was mainly due to acting. But I love those actions that are so like what we see in real life. The hearing aide getting dropped in the gunky water. The mother crying when her husband does something she doesn't approve of, and then the husband trying to cheer her up because she's making him miserable. Anytime a movie uses those true actions in the story, I think it makes the movie a million times better.
    

Song of Sparrows thoughts

Even though this movie is entirely in a different language and I couldn't understand a lick of what they were trying to say, I could completely understand everything that was going on. I even found myself at times drifting away from the subtitles and just focusing on the screen. Majid Majidi does an outstanding job moving the movie along and making it clear what is happening without understanding the dialogue. At several points throughout the movie he emphasizes several emotions, comedy, and tragedy that are clear without dialogue. The comedy was obvious with things like Karim pushing the boy into the dirty water when someone yelled snake, or when he has all the different people on the back of his bike. Then there are moments when you can really see how Karim is feeling. For example when he was told he had lost his job you notice that he just looks empty and he is broken. Then when the fish fall all over the street its as if the young boys' dream were snatched away in an instance. Then moments that we see change in Karim is when he puts that rich man's new shirt on and looks in the mirror, it appears that at that moment he believes he wants that kind of life. Or when he watched his kids make very grown up decisions and Karim releases the bird, it shows that he realizes he has what he needs and it isn't material things. All of these things are presented and easily understood without even having to use dialogue throughout the entire movie.

Reflection on Song of Sparrows

Despite a lack of special effects and minimum background music i felt this film gripped my attention quite well for the hour and half. This goes to show that huge budgets and star power acting is not what makes a great film. The simplicity of the story exhibited in a completely different culture was fascinating to me. The level of moral content the director was able to put in this film without being overt because of legal cultural restrictions took major talent. The father in this film becomes consumed with material possessions and makes it his  main focus to the point where his world comes crashing down around him (literally). After he falls of the pile of junk that has accrued in his yard, it is then that he realizes what a mess he has made of his life. Hmmm... interesting resemblance can be drawn to Christianity; we must see the emptiness the world holds for us and turn to the things that really matter. Also, a major parody to Salvation is the kids cleaning out the well. The father says in the film that theres no way a fish could live in all that junk and muck. So the kids get the idea to clean out the filth and fill it with clean water so fish can live there. That is powerful symbolism to anyone who is open to receive it. These subtle moral messages encoded in Majid Majidi's films makes him an outstanding director. Simple story, great film, well done.                                      

The Song of Sparrows

         

There tends to be some sort of stigma (possibly an understatement) between us and Islam. That is clear. It's been made clear from our past together, and it's proven to still be clear judging by the current events over the past month. Majid Majidi was one of the lead directors that branched Islamic Cinema into mainstream media. Watching his film, "The Song of Sparrows" allowed us to look into the life of a typical Islam, with his typical family, and his typical jobs. They live just like we do. We can easily relate to them and their values. I personally did not have to force myself to sit there and put up with this man and his beliefs, but instead I merely saw the similarities between our lives and values.

This is something that art can do. It can impact. It can change. It can inspire. It can relate. Mujidi knew this. In a 1999 interview he said "No matter what country or culture you're from, you always believe in friendship, you always believe in human values, and you always believe in peace. These are the basic values that everybody believes in, and we can demonstrate those values and have them permeate through cultural and artistic manifestations (http://www.avclub.com/articles/majid-majidi,13578/)."

Maybe the developed stigma will never fully go away, but it has definitely diminished. Perhaps the power of art, making its way into the outside world, revealed to the world that what is is perceived as different isn't  something to be feared or to judged. But it reality the worlds that we all believe to be different are much like our own.

Song of the Sparrows

You better feel sorry for all those fish.

The Song of the Sparrows wasn’t quite what I expected it to be. I expected something a little…larger, and I feel kind of stupid for feeling that. It probably comes from growing up as an American and watching American cinema, where the actions are big and the stars are (for the most part) larger than life. Song of the Sparrows isn’t larger than life; it IS life, without any magic creatures, robots from space, or even complicated and convoluted dramatic subplots. The story is simple; an ostrich ranch hand (I guess that’s what we could call the position) gets fired and has to find a new way to provide for his family. His son wants to do the impossible, even against his father’s wishes, and manages to do so, saving his father from a downward spiral in the process.

I loved this movie. Like I said, the premise is so simple and the story is so universal, but the director doesn’t make it amazing by throwing in dramatic subplots or expensive action scenes; he just does what he does well and makes us care by really making these characters familiar to us and our lives. In fact, the father’s subplot even reminded me of my dad, who had to find a way to support me and my brother after my mom died and he was let go from his job. While Karim’s plight is simply driven by the loss of his job, the parallel between his struggles with finding work and keeping his family supported and the same obstacles my dad faced. Even Karim’s injuries related to my dad’s arthritis, which set in shortly after my dad invested everything he had the go-kart track he now owns.

This is how the director connects to us; this story is familiar not because every other movie we’ve seen has it, but because we have lived this story. We know where it is going not because we’ve watched other movies with the same story, but because we’ve lived those twists and turns before, or watched family members go through those twists and turns. That’s why this movie has been so successful in the international circuit, and that’s why I like it.



The Song of Sparrows

 

Insallah

An expression "insallah" was very often used in the movie. In Arabic, it means "Allah willing". It is not just an expression that they use as we use "oh my gosh", it is a word that pretty much can sum up the muslim perspective of life. I think this worldview of Islamic countries is very important to know in order to understand a movie made by muslims. Just like "English" is used in Hollywood movies", "insallah" is always there in Arabic movies.

I heard that it is very hard for athletes to play against Arab players, because they tend to be mentally stronger. If they win, it's "God willing"; if they lose, it's "God willing". They have nothing to lose. They just submit to the will of Allah. When you are playing against Arabs, you are not playing against them; you are actually playing against their principality.

I have already shared during the discussion how Ostrich was a symbol or foreshadowing of Karim(?). In the movie, they made very obvious that things happened for a reason. Nothing in the movie was a coincidence, but rather a soft hand of Allah leading Karim back to home, back to where he belongs. It wasn't his calling to work as a taxi driver in the big city, but "Ostrich" was his calling. No matter how hard he tried, he could not stand against "Allah's will". His need for money which later turned into greed definitely hindered him to get back home, but as the wall collapsed and broke his legs, Allah led him to the place where he was called to be.

It was interesting to see that how a field in front of Karim's house was barren, when he started to wander in the city, but from the moment he stayed home, the field became green and fruitful. Leaving his house more with fruits and guests than junk that he brought from the city. As he submitted to the will of Allah, his field became green, and his house got livelier and filled with fruits. He was blessed as he submitted to Allah.

I felt like what I have shared so far was the dictating theme in the movie, which was subtly executed in a heart-warming way. They did not try to teach us about Allah and their worldview, but they simply made an audience to be delighted by what they believe. I appreciate the art behind it, but it is truly intimidating.

Because they take delight in Allah, they were able to make him delightful.

Do we take delight in our Lord?
Only when we are delighted by our Lord, I believe only then we'll be able to delight others in the same way we are delighted.

Once again, it is a matter of authenticity.

Song of Sparrows

Going into "Song of Sparrrows," I had no idea what to expect. I had never heard of the movie nor the director of this specific film, and now that I've seen it, I am very proud to say that I got to see this film. The concept and storyline was very beautiful and inspiring. As the years go by in our society, people seem to start losing touch with what's most important to them, no matter what or who they are.
My favorite thing in this film was looking at all of the different faces and emotions between the characters, and seeing them coming into terms with who they were. It's very important for the actors to portray the roles as best as they can, which clearly shows, especially in this film, that connecting with your emotions on screen is very important and can change the way you may view a film.

Song of Sparrows truly showed the meaning of what life can really be about. At first, I was unsure as to what I thought about it when it opened up with a man who works with ostriches. However, as the film went on, I really started to see the similarities between this film and how our world really works. It was beautiful to me how the father was able to sit back and realize something so positive and inspirational out of a situation that was far from good. Seeing how much his family was striving to be the best they could be, knowing they have very little, but making the most of it, was so wonderfu. Knowing that we are not alone in certain situations is comforting, and knowing that God will always guide us and help us to see and always cherish with love and happiness is such a great thing.

Song of Sparrows

My favorite aspect of Songs of Sparrows was its cinematography. Many of the shots look like beautiful paintings or pictures. Film is so much more influential when thought goes into the placement of the camera and subjects. I enjoyed the symbolism in the film, although that's never a deal breaker for me. 

What I found most interesting in the film was the depiction of Iranian life. In the United States we have such a bad perception of Iran, but we forget that it's full of normal people trying to make their way in life. As Dawn noted, I also find interesting the similarities between Christianity and Islam. Phrases like "God is good" and "I will pray for you" are used in both religions. 

I also like the depiction of the father. His love for his children shined throughout the movie. Not just in his quest for the hearing aid, but for the little things, like holding the antenna for his kids, letting them draw on his cast, and his desire to provide for them. Unfortunately greed got in the way of his ultimate goal, which is something we can all relate to. As was said in the discussion, this film could have easily been set anywhere. The situations, emotions, and desires are something that every human relates to.

I won't pretend that I was blown away by this film. I felt like it lasted three hours. Now I'm not someone who loves constant excitement, or hates foreign films. The Bands Visit was one of my favorite films I have watched this year, and was slow and had subtitles  But, it pulled me in much more than this one did. I wouldn't have minded Band to be a bit longer. That's not to say Sparrows was bad at all, it was very well made and a good film. The humor had me laughing a few times too. This is a movie that I think I would need to watch again to really get the symbolism, and I would also recommend it. For me, it was more educational about Iran than anything else. 

Sparrows and Ostrich

i can't say that I've ever watched a foreign film before but The Song of the Sparrows was an amazing film. What i loved most about this film was the main character Karim. The transformation that he must go through is so powerful. The movie to me was just like playing out events of the everyday man. How in order to get back to how things where before you must go through bad times, losing the ostrich was a bad time for Karim but in the end he became a better man, husband and father. When he broke his leg and he watched all of his stuff get sold, it finally hit him. The city life changed him, having people not pay him, being forced to move items into a persons home, being haggled, everything! He was just this hard working man that had a modest paying job as a ostrich farmer, but when he began working in the city he became quick tempered and a bit abusive. The sparrow trap in Karim's house represents himself and when he released it, he released himself as well. He was trapped by the pressure of getting a job and his raising his family, but after breaking his leg he has learned to calm down, enjoy life and become  a better man. This is my very first foreign film and it certainly won't be the last!

Oh To Be an Ostrich

One of the things I do after watching movies in SignsNWonders is bing (no google here. O_o) the movie so I get characters' names down pat for when I blab about them. When I binged The Song of Sparrows, I naturally stumbled across a few summaries of the film.

 Practically each one of those summaries talked about a dad who failed, got fired, and started losing sight of his family and the real values in life because of it. And during the discussion after the film last night many of us talked about Karim, the father and protagonist of the film doing just that.

Now before I say that's all wrong, I will agree that I do think Karim began to lose sight of his some of his original priorities.

But I didn't feel like Karim came across that way. I don't think Karim ever became oblivious of his family's real needs, but rather took that vision to the extreme out of fear. I think most of Karim's quirks after the stability of a -ostrich rancher- job arise out of fear for himself, his future, but more importantly his family.

Karim ventures into the city (or the world in symbolic correlation) originally for his daughter's hearing aid to be fixed, only to find he has to conjure up the money for a new one. As he's leaving the city, he stumbles upon a pick-up job that can supplement for his lack of income after being fired.

Working in the city provides Karim with a lot of eye openers, knowledge, money, and things. Karim starts bringing home whatever he thinks might be useful for his family, whether his family needs it right now or not. Essentially he becomes a hoarder, a busy body, and selfish about whatever he works to bring home.

In the meantime, Karim's children are excited about the things their dad brings home, but Karim's wife, Narges, sees Karim is losing it. Karim also becomes more harsh as a father, discouraging his son's dreams of becoming a millionaire off selling fish, and even slapping his daughter when the kids get together on the roadside to try and make money selling flowers. I get the impression that Karim is worried about the safety of his children, a worry that has developed on the back of the anxiety from being fired.

Now, bouncing back to fear, I see Karim's stern paternal methods in regards to his son's dreams as Karim knowing what it's like to lose a dream and not wanting his son to have to feel that, as well as perhaps anger that his son has a dream and is trying with all he has to make it areality, something Karim is frankly terrible at doing.

Karim wants the best for his family, and I think that bringing more and more stuff home is Karim's sort of self-gratifying way of somewhat accomplishing the best he can at the moment for his family. Karim is afraid that losing his job mean's he won't be able to obtain the best for his family and keep them happy, but in bringing home all the stuff he can, he's trying to get the slightest grasp he can of keeping his family happy [even if he is very wrong in thinking this].

Among the vast amount of symbolism in this movie, the most striking for me was probably when the group of boys (including Karim's son) finally got their fish only to have the bucket the fish were in break and spill everywhere.

To me, this was symbolic of Karim's newly hatched dream that he'd been fostering for the duration between his employment and his accident shattering and needing to be let go.
It also struck as symbolic in Karim's hold on his children: he needed to let them fly too, he couldn't force safety on them and hold them back from where they need to go.

And last but not least, the runaway ostrich reminded me symbolically of Karim himself. The ostrich decided to take a gander throughout the world and realized it's better to be where there are ostriches who love and support it than running around laying eggs that get smashed and eaten all the time. When the ostrich came home at the end, so did Karim.

Because Ostrich racing is real, and I was really hoping that's where this movie was going at first.

The Song of Ostriches

For those of you who don't know, this past Sunday at Signs and Wonders, we watched a film called "The Song of Sparrows". 

The film was about a virtuous man named Karim trying to be a good father, but was slowly loosing his connection with his family obliviously. After an ostrich escaped the ostrich farm he worked at, and he was blamed for the loss, Karim left the ostriches behind to find work elsewhere. For a while, he worked as a motorcycle taxi service, but one day, while he was rummaging through the pile of junk that he had collected, it all collapsed on him leaving him bed ridden for months. During that time, he experienced a revolution. He began to realize that he was neglecting his wife and daughter because he was consumed with the pointless items. Day by day, his family and friends cleared all of his excess away. The film ends where it began; at the ostrich farm.

I personally really liked this film for its humorous take on some aspects life, but also because of the truth it speaks about life.

One of the truths I found most touching was that of the "ridiculous dream". The loving father actively attacked the dream of his son because becoming a millionaire by breeding and selling fish was, in Karim's mind, a waste of his son's thoughts and time. In the end, his son actually cleared out the murky cistern and filled it with water. The cistern was so perfect, that sparrows began nesting in it's peace and solitude. 

Karim's son's dream could become a reality.

When I was little, I knew I wanted to be an artist. I wrote and illustrated my first (and last) children's book trilogy when I was about six. Drawing was just always my passion. 

As I got older, a new dream began to rear it's head: I wanted to be a musician. The only problem with that was that my voice just wasn't very impressive, I hadn't been playing piano very long, and at that point, I hadn't even considered teaching myself guitar. Thus, people never really let me sing, I was never comfortable in front of people when I played piano, and I never played guitar for people (even after I'd learned a few songs). 

People told me to stick to what I was good at. To not do something that wasn't in my area of ability. To leave the solos to the girl with a strong voice. To be in the background only. I've always been stubborn, however, and, in the privacy of my room, I grew my voice, the calluses on my fingers, and studied my sheet music even though it would never really amount to anything according to some.

After years of holding to the dream, I'm still by no means a Mozart, but I am a semi-lead singer in the worship ensemble here at Huntington University, I've composed a couple songs accompanied by guitar, a few songs for piano, a dubstep single, and a few short techno demos. 

My dream could become a reality, but for now, I'll just stick to art. =j

(If you want to hear my music mentioned, click this. There's a download link in the song's description if you like it.)

Song of Sparrows

This film really brings you into the Iranian culture, especially that of Iranian suburbs. I felt as if I was transported to another world, yet one that carried so much familiarity for me that I could relate extremely well with the characters in the story. I think one major difference between our two cultures is that the one portrayed in the film got down to the basic needs, duties, and desires of humans, while American culture provides a lot more distractions that confuse those basic things - we somehow convince ourselves that we need this and that, yet end up empty when we've finally obtained them. And I think this is addressed in Song of Sparrows as well, when we see Karim continue to build up his mound of material things that just sit there... So I guess at face value their culture seems more basic and less "corrupted" by things that are of no value, (probably due to the general poverty that exists there) but when you look closely they experience the same temptations as we do. It would seem that wherever there is a desire for more "stuff", that desire is not fulfilled no matter how much we gather for ourselves.

Another huge theme in this film is the importance of family and inter-personal relationships. Karim doesn't seem to get it until he has no choice but to sit there and learn from his children. They teach him what really matters; their heart for the fish in the pond, the love between them and their mother, the right motivation behind working hard. Only when he is willing to learn from a child can he go on with life as one who sees it's beauty.

I think this is really cool, because it fits so well with what we've been learning about becoming a child in order to do good art...and how Jesus lifted children to such a level that if you cannot become like them, you won't be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Majidi knew this well, and I think that even though he doesn't see Jesus as the Son of God, he really gets this part of the Gospel better than a lot of Christians.... so we really have a lot to learn from Muslims. And I think we can learn something of God's truth from even those "Samaritans" of this age that we're just too judgmental of to listen to with an open mind. All this said, Song of Sparrows is a beautiful film that communicates much truth through the rare lens of Islamic film.

Song of Sparrows

• I can't say that I've seen a whole lot of foreign films in my lifetime. If you asked me how many i've seen, I would probably just say "Song of Sparrows" only because I can't remember any other foreign films as great as this one. What I loved the most about this film is the main character Karim. The transformation he undertakes throughout the whole movie is subtle yet all too powerful towards the end. At first I didn't really get it. The movie to me was just playing out the events of an everyday man in Iran. I think it hit me once he broke his leg. When he is sitting in the house as he watches all of his stuff be sold, I think that's when it hits him, and when it also made sense to me. The city changed this man. The things that happened to him, like people not paying him, or being haggled, or forced to help move stuff into a house... It all changed him. He was this hard working man that loved his job at the ostrich farm (so much that he had to dress up as an ostrich to find the missing one) and once he got fired and he had to go into the city to buy a hearing aid for his daughter, he slowly became more abusive and angry. I love what Professor ford said about the sparrow in the house, because it really did describe the movie perfectly. The sparrow was trapped inside the house, and once it was free it represented Karim's spirit in a sense. He was trapped by these pressures of the city and his family, but after his accident with his leg, he learned to chill out, and just enjoy life for what it is. This was especially true when he was singing to the kids in the back of the truck once they had lost their fish. I came into this movie, expecting something weird and possibly boring, but after watching, I realized this was in fact a really cool and very inspiring movie.

Song of Sparrows

I'm so thankful that I got to see this film. I basically had to run to Signs and Wonders in order to get to it on time, (due to helping some friends with film equipment and such) and when I sat down I admit that I honestly was unsure about the film. Entering into the film slightly late, it was a little startling to try and figure out where the film maker was going with his ideas.

As the movie progressed though I was more and more thankful I had decided to attend. I really loved the symbolism of our protagonist being like an Ostrich. How he knows where it is he truly belongs, but he decides to run from that into the wilderness. This wilderness is eventually his undoing, but in his undoing, he finds what was actually important from the very beginning. His family, and his culture, the two most important things to him, are set right once again by the help of those who are precious to him.

The summary of emotions that was portrayed in the film is so amazingly universal I can defiantly see why Song of Sparrows is favored so highly among viewers and critics.

Child-like Dreams

My favorite part about the movie last night was in the children. When I first saw Karim yelling at them, I automatically assumed that they were doing something wrong (typical for youngsters to misbehave—especially in stories, right?). However, throughout the movie it became very clear that the children were working hard to accomplish a common goal. In a way, I agree with the father's actions when he tries to discourage them from becoming millionaires, but I also think he was way too harsh about it. Kids need to dream, and if they attempt to accomplish that dream by working hard, developing teamwork, and even possibly bringing in extra income for their poor family, why stop them?

This brings me to my least favorite aspect of the movie, which is merely the fact that the cultural differences made much of it harder to understand. I can only assume that having Karim's family provide for themselves was hard on him because of their culture. I suspect that it's much more of an issue of pride, but he may have also felt a sort of duty to provide for them.

When the children were saving/earning money to buy fish, I really wonder if they had any other motive but to become rich. If they really weren't trying to supplement their father's income, they what's the harm in stopping them? The kids were doing something to help the environment and keep their dream alive. Dreams are positive goals that give us incredible motivation in life. Children have the best ability to dream, but many people seem to lose that skill as they grow older. I believe that too many people get hit with the reality of life and try too hard to accept it rather than working hard to change it.

Muslim Islam movies

I was very impressed by the film. I have seen ads and trailers back in 2008 when it was released. I thought it was a great film. It was interesting to learn that the director uses kids and one major physical injury to a second main character. In this film the daughter of the father was deaf. Her and her brothers friends somehow dropped her hearing aid down a cistern well thing. And the father now has to find a way to make ends meet and pay for a new hearing aid.

It was great to see all of the trials and feeling that the father went through. He first worked on an ostrich farm then quit. Then he went to the city away from everything and became a moped taxi person. With this job he was buying random things and taking old things back to the house.

One day he climed his pile of junk and felt like he had everything in the bag. He thought he made his family happy and soon got the amount of money. But then while on top of all of items the pile collapses and he breaks a lot of bones. So he had to sit in side and watch all of his things given away.

Foreign Films

Until this year I never really liked foreign films, but Leeper's class has introduced me to some foreign films. Tonight we watched The Song of Sparrows, and it is also a foreign film. I really enjoyed the film and understood it. I've learned that just because a film is not an American film doesn't mean that it's not good film. Storytelling crosses all cultures and ethnic groups. In some ways I am almost starting to like foreign films better than American films. I love the grittiness and settings. I really liked the locations of The Song of Sparrows. The move had some city shots, but also many shots out in the wilderness and at the family's house. All I'm saying is that foreign films definitely deserve a fair chance at entertaining us. I've really learned to appreciate foreign films more and more. I would also highly recommend you to watch The Song of Sparrows, I felt the story related to almost everyone at one time or another.

Shame, Sparrow

Although there were a lot of similarities seen between central Asian people and American people, in the Song of the Sparrow, there was one thing that I noticed as odd or just different from an American stand point.  That one thing is shame. 

As an American when I think of shame, I think of someone embarrassing themselves like missing a final shot in basketball, or not knowing an obvious answer on the test.  Shame to me isn't letting a son make some money.  We see this in the movie, a father whipping his son because of the shame it brought him because that meant he couldn’t care for the family.  He was shamed because he thought he was supposed to be the sole provider of the family.  I feel like this mentality is completely different than an American one.  A father, in America, would look to his son in pride as he would work for himself and help earn money. I feel like there would not be as much shame for the American.

Another place in the movie where the main character felt shamed was when his friend told him he could help get him an x-ray of his leg, and get a doctor to look at it.  What he said in response was something along the lines of, why do you shame me so!  In a central Asian man, there is this idea of independence and self- sufficiency and that you should always be able to supply for yourself and your family. 

I feel like countries always have their own variants of what shame actually is.  In Korea, shame would be not getting into the most pristine of schools, or not being perfect in a musical performance.  In Russia, shame would be trying to run away from being drafted into the Russian army, or having a defect.   I feel like Song of the Sparrows gives us some of the reasons why men are shamed when their kids help them work or when someone tries to help them out.