Plastic Flowers Never Die

Iranian-American anthropologist and writer Roxanne Varzi made this short video essay about how contemporary Iranians view the deaths of more than 800,000 soldiers during the nation's 1980-88 war with Iraq. Traveling throughout Tehran, Varzi finds countless photographic memorials to the fallen, some officially sanctioned (most notably, a museum run by the government), while others are unofficial reminders of the loss, such as tattered photographs taped to walls and windows around the city. Yet, many Iranians seem eager to move on: Varzi's aunt refuses to allow her to watch a TV documentary on the war, and a 20-year-old film student all but acknowledges that he has no interest in the subject. Plastic Flowers Never Die falters when the filmmaker injects herself into the proceedings—having lived outside of Iran during the war, she repeatedly comments on her emotional disconnection—at one point even musing about her ghostlike reflection when she videotapes memorial photos behind glass. However, Varzi's observations about a country that glorifies the dead without questioning the reasons for their passing does offer pithy insight into Iranian sociopolitical culture. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)