The 'Drum' in Venice: Lawyer and the Drum of Death

'Drum' is the first feature film by Iranian Kurdish filmmaker Keyvan Karimi, showcased in the Critics' Week section of the Venice Film Festival; a strange film with a political/social subject that was apparently made in secret and in a prohibited manner in Iran. This young filmmaker, who was arrested as a documentary maker for 'insulting the regime' and sentenced to six years in prison and 223 lashes, faced criticism from hardline media for his presence at Venice and was unable to attend personally. Festival organizers condemned any police action against this filmmaker and honored the film's creators by adorning several empty chairs in the hall with their names, which were cheered by the audience. Keyvan Karimi, in a letter read at the event, described making this film as a 'dangerous' challenge that required 'courage,' and he decided to expend that courage. The film is more of a formal experience than a political one, attempting to focus more on form than content in a manner reminiscent of Bela Tarr's works—with black-and-white visuals, long takes, and very slow camera movements. In fact, the film is somewhat anti-narrative, and after an initial tense start, not much happens: we encounter abstract images that display this lawyer in various situations, although other events are occurring in the background without the film emphasizing them much. The lawyer's wife is murdered during an interrogation, and all these events—understood through references to radio reports—are happening during the June 2009 protests, with mentions of crowded streets and the words of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Ahmadinejad. However, it seems that aside from its brief storyline, Karimi does not intend to present a political statement and is more a filmmaker in love with narrating a space and situation; to the extent that he becomes overly enamored with some of his shots and fails to realize how unnecessarily long they are. For instance, a scene inside a bath where the camera moves aimlessly, showcasing a traditional male massage in old baths, serves more to narrate the tourist attractions of Iran for foreign viewers than to contribute to the film's narrative (similarly, the depiction of sheep slaughter serves no purpose other than showcasing an exotic custom). However, the black-and-white nature of the film significantly enhances its work and removes it from its realistic form. In fact, we are faced with an illusion or a highly surreal atmosphere occurring in a real context—today's Iran. The film does not engage in character development or providing explanations to the viewer. Many events remain completely unclear to the audience and are likely more ambiguous for foreign viewers. Nonetheless, the film is a formal invitation that deliberately turns its back on its story. With a rational perspective, we encounter a film that suffers from a weak screenplay and, in a traditional-breaking view, is an experimental film unbound by a script. In both cases, we are presented with often captivating images that share their characters in a dreamlike atmosphere; although following the film in some unnecessarily long scenes seems difficult.