Process of cinema star formation in a film by Abbas Shabaviz (1969), as a critical metaphor of enforced and superficial modernization project of the Pahlavi

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Associate Professor, Department of Cinema, Faculty of Cinema and Theatre, University of Art, Tehran, Iran.

2 Ph.D. candidate, Art Studies, Department of art and architecture, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran

10.22034/scart.2024.139658.1357

Abstract

In The Streetwalker (1969) by Abbas Shabaviz, Shahin, a commanding figure who holds authority over a chain of cabarets, becomes enamored with a gypsy singer named Atash. Shahin endeavors to elevate Atash into the central attraction of his chain of cabarets. Through Shahin's instrumental patronage and power, Atash attains the status of a celebrated star. During the process, she becomes romantically involved with Afshin, her music instructor, thereby arousing discord with Shahin. Subsequent to this juncture, Shahin channels his influence in an opposite trajectory—toward impeding the duo's artistic trajectory. This research, drawing inspiration from the works of Laura Mulvey and Mary Ann Doane regarding the construction of the female star as a commodity, endeavors to analyze the dynamics of the star formation and her objectification as a commodified entity within The Streetwalker. Throughout the narrative, Shahin, orchestrates Atash’s construction as a popular star, and following the dissolution of their relationship, Shahin employs his powers of surveillance and manipulation to dismantle Atash's image as a star, just like a product that no longer serves its purpose. The article proceeds to underscore that this depiction, can be interpreted as a critique of the Pahlavi regime's enforced modernization agenda, its seductive allure for the masses, and the shallowness underlying the changes it advocates. In conclusion, the analysis posits that The Streetwalker efficaciously presents the process of star formation within the realm of show business of its era, simultaneously offering a critique of the Pahlavi modernization initiative.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

منابع
امید، جمال (1374). تاریخ سینمای ایران: جلد اول 1357 – 1279. انتشارات روزنه.
حسین ­زاده، ابوالحسن؛ فیاض، ابراهیم؛ نادری، احمد (1402). تحلیل نشانه­ شناختیِ گفتمانی سینمای سورئالیستی ایران؛ مورد مطالعه: فیلم‌های هامون و خانه‌ای روی آب. جامعه­ شناسی فرهنگ و هنر، 5(2)، 1-18. doi: 10.22034/scart.2023.62751
زین­ العابدینی، پیام؛ شفیعیون، حوری (1402). کلیشه ­سازی جنسیتی و بازنمایی زنان در سینمای ایران. جامعه ­شناسی فرهنگ و هنر، 5(2)، 19-35. doi: 10.22034/scart.2023.62715
فوکو، میشل (1378). مراقبت و تنبیه: تولد زندان. ترجمۀ نیکو سرخوش و افشین جهاندیده. تهران: نشر نی.
قلی‌پور، علی (1399). روسپی. در حسن حسینی (ویراستار)، راهنمای فیلم سینمای ایران: جلد اول (1309-1361) (صص. 338-339). تهران: نشر روزنه کار
مالوی، لورا (1382). لذت بصری و سینمای رِوایی. ترجمۀ فتاح محمدی. ارغنون 23، 71-90.
مهرابی، مسعود (1371). تاریخ سینمای ایران از آغاز تا سال 1357. تهران: انتشارات مولف.
هیوارد، سوزان (1381). مفاهیم کلیدی در مطالعات سینمایی. زنجان: نشر هزاره سوم.
اجلالی، پرویز (1395). دگرگونی اجتماعی و فیلم‌های سینمایی در ایران. تهران: نشر آگه.
حبیبی، سید محسن؛ رضایی، مینا (1392). شهر، مدرنیته، سینما: کاوش در آثار ابراهیم گلستان. نشریه هنرهای زیبا- معماری و شهرسازی 18(2)، 5-16.  doi: 10.22059/jfaup.2013.50522.
حبیبی، سید محسن (1386). از شار تا شهر. تهران: نشر دانشگاه تهران.
References
Talattof, K. (2011). Modernity, Sexuality, and Ideology in Iran. Syracuse University Press.
Amin, C. M. (2002). The Making of Modern Iranian Woman: Gender, State Policy, and Popular Culture, 1865–1946. University Press of Florida.
Chehabi, H. E. (2003). The banning of the veil and its consequences. In S. Cronin (Ed.), The Making of Modern Iran: State and Society Under Riza Shah, 1921-1941 (pp. 2023-221). Routledge.
Katouzian, H. (2003). Riza Shah’s political legitimacy and social base, 1921–1941. In S. Cronin (Ed.), The Making of Modern Iran: State and Society Under Riza Shah, 1921-1941 (pp. 15-37). Routledge.
DeCordova, R. (2007). The Emergence of the Star System in America. In S. Redmond & S. Holmes (Eds.), Stardom and Celebrity: A Reader (pp. 132-140). SAGE Publications.
Doane, M. A. (1988). The Abstraction of a Lady: "La Signora di tutti". Cinema Journal 28(1), 65-84.
Dyer, R. (1998). Stars. British Film Institute.
Gamson, J. (2007). The Assembly Line of Greatness: Celebrity in Twentieth-Century America. In S. Redmond & S. Holmes (Eds.), Stardom and Celebrity: A Reader (pp. 141-155). SAGE Publications.
Hollinger, K. (2006). The Actress: Hollywood Acting and the Female Star. Routledge.
Kuhn, A., & Westwell, G. (2012). A Dictionary of Film Studies. Oxford University Press.
Linderman, D. (1991). The Mise-en-Abîme in Hitchcock's "Vertigo". Cinema Journal 30(4), 51-74.
McDonald, P. (2000). The Star System: Hollywood's Production of Popular Identities. Wallflower Press.
Modleski, T. (2015). The Women Who Knew Too Much: Hitchcock and Feminist Theory. Routledge.
Mulvey, L. (1996). Fetishism and Curiosity. Indiana University Press.
Mulvey, L. (2011). Phantom of the Circus. Film Quarterly 65(2), 25-27.
Mulvey, L. (2014). Compulsion to Repeat: Max Ophüls’s Lola Montès. Afterall: A Journal of Art, Context, and Enquiry 35, 84-93.
Shail, A. (2006). “She looks just like one of we-all!”: British Cinema Culture and the Origins of Woolf's Orlando. Critical Quarterly 48(2), 45–76.
Sociology of Culture and Art
Volume 6, Issue 3 - Serial Number 21
September 2024
Pages 93-104

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics