Salaam Cinema: Unlikely Journeys in Documentary

Abstract

The article addresses the Iranian documentary film Salaam Cinema's overt meditation on power and discusses the analysis of the film's highly self-reflexive and deconstructive style. The paper considered the open conception of cinema that Iranian director Mohsen Makhmalbaf articulates in the film Salaam Cinema. It stated that Makhmalbaf's tribute to the centenary of cinema in this film manifests the early desire of cinema to engage with the real. Argues that because of its complex meta-textual, self-reflexive and deconstructive strategies, the film deserves serious critical reconsideration in the context of on-going theoretical discussions concerning documentary film.