The Actor

One of a series of eight newly-released videos of works by (or about) Teheran-born Iranian filmmaker Mohsen Makhmalbaf (Gabbeh, The Silence), The Actor (1993) is one of the later titles in the collection (which ranges from 1983 to the mid-'90s). Representing one of the director's wildly divergent styles, this outlandish comedy (originally titled "Honarpisheh") concerns a troubled actor who not only longs to make serious art films instead of the insipid commercial dreck he's been appearing in, but is also being urged by his infertile wife to take a concubine in order to produce a child. Unfortunately, from its sluggishly unbroken opening monologue through its hokey, melodramatic staging, The Actor is less accessible than some of Makhmalbaf's later works. Strictly optional, except for really in-depth foreign film collections. (T. Rich)