Audio By Carbonatix
Once-renowned Iranian filmmaker Bahman Farmanara (Prince Ehtejab) had not made a picture since 1979, when his third film was banned by the post-Revolutionary Censor Board. Now, 23 years later–after moving to North America for a decade, then returning to Iran–he is back making movies. Smell of Camphor so closely mirrors Farmanara’s own life that it could almost be a documentary. The writer-director even plays the central character, a 55-year-old filmmaker who has been banned from making films for 20 years. Finally he is permitted to make a documentary about Iranian funeral rites. The film, however, is a front of sorts, because the director has become convinced that he is dying. The climactic scene in the movie will not only be a funeral but his funeral. While the character prepares for the film–and for the death he is sure awaits him–he ruminates about the death of his beloved wife, his mother’s drift into Alzheimer’s and the stifling effect of fundamentalist Islamic thought on Iranian society. While the story has a definite comedic side to it, the film takes a hard look at what is going on in contemporary Iran. Farmanara, the actor, proves a likable and sympathetic fellow, bringing a real poignancy to the role and, thus, to the story, which seems, more than anything, the tale of a man coming to terms with his life.
