In Part 1 and Part 2 of this series, we saw that the depiction of Muslims in Western cinema
began with fantasies about lecherous robed swordsmen and devolved further into
ready-to-die swarms of misogynist gunmen. Alongside these movies, however, are
films that emphasize a pleasant disposition of pious Muslims. The following are
sympathetic films with clear sympathetic intentions, and they are net-positive,
though some manage to have serious problems.
Tom Tykwer's "A Hologram for the King" (2016) takes us to
Saudi Arabia, presenting it as the most absurd place on earth. The likable Tom
Hanks is a depressed, struggling businessman visiting the country to give a
sales pitch to the monarch. He flies on a plane full of male pilgrims—there are
no women flying with them—whose collective prayers are so loud that he cannot
sleep. He develops likable friendships with a chauffeur and a female
physician, Zahra (played by Sarita Choudhury).
The chauffeur is having an emotional affair with a married
woman who is "as dumb as a goat." He is frightened that her husband will wire
his car to explode, because according to such films, that's how Arab or Muslim
men address their grievances. The cuckold himself travels to Europe "to have
sex with boys."
The physician speaks in the occasional proverb, like "We're
stuck with our stupid good health." Even
such Arabian Nights-inspired films—like
the many versions of "Thief of Bagdad," "Ali Baba", "Sinbad," "Aladdin"—have
protagonists speaking in proverbs with similar awkward language that would make
Yoda proud. Though the film presents Sarita as a strong, confident female Muslim
character, which is rare in film, she immediately develops a relationship with
Hanks, because apparently, Tom Hanks is that irresistible. There is no other
explainable motivation. Soon, her Hijab comes off, but that is not enough. As
they go swimming, her top comes off also, because she does not want her
neighbors to think a woman is swimming with a man, so it is better that they
show two bare backs to the world, letting the world think they are both men.
Another common theme in such movies is that the biggest
oppression from Islam is that Muslims are not allowed to drink alcohol. In "Argo" (2012), the escaping Americans realize they are free when they are out of
Iranian air space and are allowed to drink. In 2005's "Syriana," George Clooney's
Iranian colleagues party indoors with whiskey. Here, Hanks thirsts for a beer,
and finds out that everyone in Saudi Arabia drinks behind closed doors. To be
fair, the film attempts balance by showing the Danish workers as partiers
spending their nights in drunken orgies, so wild that they make the Saudis seem
like monks.
In any case, of all the different ways the filmmakers could
have depicted Saudi Arabia, which is a police state, like all of the Middle
Eastern nations to varying degrees, the filmmakers chose to feature
preposterous narratives about gender.
The second problem with depictions of Muslim piety is one
of editing, most commonly in sympathetic documentaries. National Geographic
produced an excellent film in 2003 about the Muslim pilgrimage, "Inside Mecca,"
following the journeys of three people: a South African man, an American woman
and a Malaysian man. For some reason, all of the images they showed of past
Muslim prophets were of White People. Further, their depiction of South Africa
was also clichéd: a jungle with monkeys. The film was one of the most intimate,
sensitive portrayals of Muslim piety ever produced, yet still fell into the
usual Eurocentric biases.
Another excellent documentary, "Inside Islam: What a Billion
Muslims Really Think" (2009), summarizes the findings of a giant Gallup poll exploring
Muslim opinions on every topic from terror to governance to gender equality. The
findings were shown with bar graphs illustrating that the opinions of Muslims
across the world are far more complex and liberal than many might imagine. But,
interspersed with these graphs were images of Muslims as terrorists and angry
mobs. Some might disagree with this point because the film was full of images
of Muslims in various peaceful, happy behaviors, but we remember the images of
violence far more than the images of mercy.
The third problem, however, is not the responsibility of the
filmmakers, but has to be discussed when speaking about Islam in Western cinema: small protests that go too far. The most classic example is the 1977
release of Moustapha Akkad's biography of the Prophet Muhammad, may peace be
upon him, entitled, "The Message."
Akkad made a film that chronicled the first generation of
Islam, depicted in the tradition of the great Biblical epics of old Hollywood. Upon
rumors of its release, however, a small group of Muslims laid siege on three
buildings in Washington, D.C.—the main mosque, B'nai B'rith headquarters and a
government building—with various complaints, including assertions that "The
Message" was blasphemous. The standoff (which included a murder), however, took
place two months before the film was released, so there was no way for the
hostage takers to have known anything beyond rumors. Since then, the stereotype
has become that when there is media featuring the Prophet Muhammad—who was the
central character of "The Message" but was not depicted—somewhere Muslims will
protest and people will die. And, even though that is the anomaly, in today's
instantaneous media, it seems like the default, which is sad.
Moustapha Akkad—who gained fame producing the "Halloween"
movies—commented that he was hoping to make a film about Saladin (Salah al-Din)
but was too concerned about the protests. The saddest part of Akkad's story,
however, is that years later, while attending a wedding in Jordan, he was
killed with his daughter in a suicide bombing (not related to "The Message").
Nevertheless, the Oscar-nominated film has been one of the most-watched
of all movies about Islam. For years at Islamic centers, "babysitting" at
large events was a matter of putting kids in a room to watch this movie. Chances
are that if you know a Muslim my age, s/he has this film memorized.
Ultimately, while the vast majority of depictions of Muslims
in our Cinema are negative and violent, there are some that are sympathetic and
peaceful. Whether the problem is from the cultural myopia of the filmmakers, or
the failure of the technical consultants, even these attempts at sensitivity
still have their flaws. Then, on the other hand, we have those films that may
be acceptable, yet some people feel the need to take leave of their senses
about such films. When blood is shed, we all get tarnished.
To read "Islam in Western Cinema, Part 1 - The Exotic Muslim, from the Exotic Land," click here.
To read "Islam in Western Cinema, Part 2 - The Violent, Militant Muslim," click here.
To read "Islam in Western Cinema, Part 4 - The Journey through American Islam," click here.
