Written and directed by Jon Stewart. Honestly, I never expected to be typing those words on this thread. And while I don’t follow his program on the Comedy Network, he seems to encompass a political point of view that at least tries to hold accountable the powers that be in my own country: the US of A.
A liberal in other words. But the sort of liberal that is allowed to question the powers that be in America. In other words, exposing the nature of crony capitalism…but only up to a point.
Here though he takes on a far easier target: theocracy. In Iran. And the film makes it all quite clear that living in a theocracy can be perceived by some as a hell on earth.
It is based on a true story.
On the other hand, there is Iran when it was not a theocracy. When, instead, it was a brutal military dictatorship backed to the hilt by the Amercan government. Indeed, put into power by the American government. Cue Jeane Kirkpatrick’s destinction between authoritarian thugs [our guys] and totalitarian thugs [their guys]. And Stewart to his credit does connect the dots between Iran in the 1950s and Iran today. And thus exposes [at least up to a point] the true nature of American foreign policy.
So, it would not surprise me at all if it turned out that Maziar really was in fact on the payroll of the CIA.
Basically, this is one of those films where over and again you are asking yourself: What would I do? Which some will then twist into this: What is the right thing to do? To which there are any number of objectivists out there who will swear that they [and they alone] know the answer.
The “backstory”:
Maziar Bahari was imprisoned, interrogated, and beaten in Iran for 118 days in 2009 on charges that he was attempting to stage the overthrow of the Iranian government. One of the pieces of “evidence” that Bahari’s Iranian captors held against him as proof of his guilt was footage from a segment on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart in which he was interviewed by Jason Jones pretending to be a spy. During the sketch, Bahari called Iran’s president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, an “idiot”. After he was released, Bahari was interviewed on “The Daily Show” by Jon Stewart, who discussed the role that the show had (inadvertently) played in his imprisonment. Stewart and Bahari became friendly, and Stewart decided to adapt Bahari’s 2011 book “Then They Came for Me: A Family’s Story of Love, Captivity and Survival” (co-written with Aimee Molloy) into a screenplay.
IMDb
The actual Maziar Bahari makes a cameo appearance as a man sitting in the desk near the camera when his character “confesses” to his crimes on Iranian Television.
at wiki: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosewater_(film
trailer: youtu.be/cEExQHYsOT4
ROSEWATER [2014]
Written and directed by Jon Stewart
[b]Maziar [voiceover]: When I was nine, my sister took me to the Shrine of Masumeh. It was beautiful. But I’ll never forget the smell. A mix of sweat, and the rosewater they showered down on the faithful. I used to think only the most pious carried that seem.
…
Mother: Mazi jaan…Mazi jaan…
Maziar: Mmm.
Mother: Wake up. These men want to talk with you.
…
Newscaster: There is great anticipation in the run-up to Iran’s presidential election. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the hardline incumbent, is no longer the guaranteed victor. His opponent, the more moderate Mir-Hussein Mousavi, has been gaining quickly and could be poised for an historic upset. But Ahmadinejad’s student organizer Alireza Abkar still believes.
Abkar [on television]: So-called Western democracy is corrupt because it reflects only the will of the people.[/b]
That is the political backdrop of the story.
[b]News colleague: You think he’ll still want to talk?
Maziar: Yes, I mean, if I bring him some Maltesers, he will talk. Allah is no match for London chocolates.
Bobby: It’s not funny.
Maziar: I’m sorry?
Bobby: It’s pathetic. Ahmadinejad or whoever, they take these poor street kids, who’ve got nothing, give them food or sweets or whatever. Indoctrinate them to spout this gibberish. It’s pathetic, and that’s the real story we should be doing.
…
Davood [mocking Abkar]: “This is what must be, Maziar. This is what must be.” Oh, man, that guy! Who talks like that? I can’t believe he let you film it.
Maziar: Why not? He’s a poster boy for the Supreme Leader. What’s he got to be afraid of?
Davood: Looking like an ignorant asshole.
Maziar: He’s not alone, you know.
Davood: Yeah. Neither am I. Just because you can’t see the cockroaches doesn’t mean they are not there.
…
Jason Jones [of The Daily Show]: So, as a spy, I’m just trying to figure out why your country is so terrifying?
Maziar: You know, the first thing to know about Iran is that it is not evil. Actually, Americans and Iranians have a lot of things in common, more than they have differences.
Jason Jones: What do I have in common with you?
Maziar: What is the number one enemy of the United States?
Jason Jones: Al-Qaeda.
Maziar: AI-Qaeda is also the number one enemy of Iran. The Al-Qaeda members say that if you kill an Iranian or if you kill a Shiite, you go to Heaven and you get 72 virgins.
…
Maziar: Hey, Davood! Wait, you’re gonna get hurt!
Davood: We have to fight back!
Maziar: You’re gonna get killed! Come on.
Davood: What do you want me to do, huh? They took my vote. I’m dirt to them. I’m dust. It’s not right.
Maziar: No, it’s not right, Davood.
Davood: Ah, well, who are you to say? You have a real weapon and you choose not to use it.[/b]
His camera in other words.
Prison official [to Maziar]: Welcome to Abu Ghraib, or whatever you Americans like to call it.
The infamous Evin prison. Once entrusted to Savak. Our thugs.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evin_Prison
[b]Haj: Bahari is not some street thug. He will be well-prepared intellectually.
Javad [Rosewater]i: Of course.
Haj: I’ve given you the questions he must answer. But, Javadi, we must have his confession! Do you understand?
Javadi: Of course, sir.
Haj: The people in the streets must know how they have been fooled by these traitors. We can end this, but we must show them how their leaders have been receiving orders from foreigners, Zionists and Jews in the West. They will listen to him, Javadi.
Javadi: Yes, sir.
Haj: And remember, we need his face for the cameras. This will take much more than just a fist, Javadi.
…
Ravadi: Yes, we know you are a spy.
Maziar: A spy?
Ravadi: Yes. The game is over, Mr. Bahari.
Mazari: And for who am I a spy?
Ravadi: For CIA, MIG, Mossad, Newsweek. You tell me.
Mazari: Newsweek magazine’?
Ravadi: No, Newsweek the carpenter. The media arm for CIA.[/b]
Here we are all supposed to scoff. Well, I don’t. The corporate media is an arm of the crony capitalist ruling class. And that certainly includes the CIA.
[b]Mazari: He’s not a spy.
Ravadi: He’s not a spy?
Mazari: He’s… No, it’s a show. A comedy show. It’s stupid. He’s a comedian pretending to be a spy.
Ravadi: So, can you tell me why an American pretending to be a spy had chosen to interview you?
Mazari: And why would a real spy have a TV show’?
Ravadi: Why did you tell this man that America and Iran has something in common? Was that funny, too? You know, Khamenei said that America is the Great Satan. But maybe you don’t think that’s right. Maybe we have been hasty. We kicked America out of the door and you will bring them back through the windows.
…
Maziar [to Baba Akbar his father as though he were in the cell]: I have nothing to tell them because I’m not a spy.
…
Maziar: The American government doesn’t control Newsweek magazine. To be honest, it’s not even worth controlling anymore. This weekly model of magazines is completely outdated.
Ravadi: Outdated?
Maziar: There are better ways of doing propaganda. Through the Internet. In the blogs. Twitter. Uh…There’s many things. The game has changed completely.
…
Haj: Your father was imprisoned at one time, was he not’?
Maziar: Yes.
Haj: When was this?
Maziar: In 1953.
Haj: He was accused of being a communist.
Mazari: Yes.
Haj: Was he?
Mazari: He was a communist back then.
Haj: On whose authority was he detained?
Mazari: Under the Shah.
Haj: Yes. The Shah of Iran. I’m sorry. That must have been difficult for your family.
Maziar: Thank you, sir.
Haj: I thought at that time, Iran had a democratic leader. Mossadegh. Mohammad Mossadegh. So there was a coup?
Maziar: Yes.
Haj: Organized by?
Maziar: The CIA. The Americans, British…
Haj: Operation Ajax I believe it was called. The West wanted the Iranian people’s oil.
Maziar: Yes.
Haj: And the journalists and gangsters that were paid by the CIA to spread lies and violence, and turn the Iranian people against its government so the Americans and Zionists could deploy their puppet the traitor, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi…
Maziar: Yes, but that was in those days, sir. I…But I am not a spy!
…
Ravadi: My bosses are not happy with you.
Maziar: But I don’t understand. I’m trying to do everything you want me…I am trying to figure out the media conspiracy, but I cannot lie to you.
Ravadi: I know. I know this. But they have decided to kill you. I brought you a Nescaf.
Maziar: Why…Why do they want to kill me?
Ravadi: There is milk and sugar.
[pause]
Ravbadi: You don’t like my Nescaf?
Maziar: I don’t understand what they can achieve by killing me.
Ravadi: You don’t like my Nescaf. Blindfold.
Maziar: It’s…
Ravadi: Blindfold. Now is the time.
…
Baba Akbar: They barely touched you. Others have suffered more.
Maziar: No, Baba. No, no. You don’t understand. You were what they said you were.
Baba Akbar: You can choose who you are.
Maziar: I am not a spy. I am not a spy…
Baba Akbar: They locked you up, but you are still free.
Maziar: You don’t understand, Baba! You were who they said you were.
Baba Akbar: You filmed the truth about these sisterfuckers. What is more dangerous to them than the truth. huh? Tell me.
Maziar: It didn’t change anything. Look where it got me.
Baba Akbar: God damn it, believe in something! It is your only hope.
Maziar: Like communism? Did it ever occur to you that the dream that kept you during your torment, it was corrupt? Your great Russian heroes, they also torture. Your torture was conceived in the Gulags. Where do you think the Shah’s secret police got it from? From the Soviets. From the CIA, from the Mossad. From all the fucked up secret services of the world.
…
Maziar [in his television confession]: My name is Maziar Bahari. And I am a member of the western media. I am a journalist, and as such, I am a member of the Western capitalist machine. Western media saw its candidate lose the elections, on June the 12th of 2009. Western media claimed it was a fraud to undermine and to hurt the legitimacy of the elections. Western media afterwards claimed that there was a coup. What followed was a series of preplanned actions designed to foment a failed color revolution. My colleagues and I started to ignore accurate reporting and we produced reports that were very inaccurate and illegal. I apologize to the Iranian people…and to my family. And to our Supreme Leader for my actions and my wrongdoings.
…
Prison guard: Specialist time, Mr. Hillary Clinton.
Maziar [startled]: What did you say?
Guard: Mr. Hillary Clinton. She’s been talking a lot about you.[/b]
Segue to the media barrage about him around the globe. And that changes everything.