The Glass Agency

The Glass Agency (Persian: آژانس شیشه‌ای‎) is a 1998 Iranian drama film directed by Ebrahim Hatamikia,[1] and one of his most successful works and one of the most popular and controversial films of post-revolutionary Iranian cinema.[2]

The Glass Agency
International poster
Directed byEbrahim Hatamikia
Produced byVarahonar
Farabi Cinema Foundation
Written byEbrahim Hatamikia
StarringParviz Parastui
Reza Kianian
Habib Rezaei
Music byMajid Entezami
CinematographyAziz Saati
Edited byHayedeh Safiyari
Release date
  • February 1, 1998 (1998-02-01) (Fajr)
  • July 8, 1998 (1998-07-08) (Iran)
  • February 19, 1999 (1999-02-19) (BIFF)
Running time
114 minutes
CountryIran
LanguagePersian

The Glass Agency is set in a travel agency where an armed veteran takes hostages after failing to raise enough money for his injured comrade to travel abroad for medical treatment. The film candidly reveals some of the major fault lines in Iranian society today. With its complex message of sympathy for the veterans and criticism of those who exploit their status for political purposes, the film has won praise from conservatives and reformists alike.[3]

Plot

Two veterans of Iran-Iraq war, Abbas and his wartime commander Kazem are the main protagonists of the film. Abbas comes to Tehran to seek medical treatment for a war injury. Kazem wants to help Abbas as the doctor recommends that he should go abroad for the operation. However, it is almost New Year's Eve, and arranging a flight becomes difficult. Kazem is suffering from hegemony which is seen in the postwar society. The problems they encounter make Kazem lose his temper, and he ends up taking a whole travel agency hostage.[4]

Cast
  • Parviz Parastui - Haj Kazem
  • Reza Kianian - Salahshoor
  • Habib Rezaei - Abbas Heydari
  • Asghar Naghizadeh - Asghar
  • Bita Badran - Narges
  • Ghasem Zareh - Ahmad Kuhi
  • Behrouz Shoeibi - Salam
  • Farshid Zarei Fard - Agency Manager
  • Majid Moshiri
  • Ezzatollah Mehravaran
  • Nasrin Nakisa
  • Mehrdad Falahatgar
  • Mohammad Hatami
  • Sadegh Safai

Awards

At the 1998 Fajr International Film Festival, the film won eight Crystal Simorgh awards: Best Film, Best Actor (Parviz Parastui), Best Supporting Actor (Reza Kianian), Best Supporting Actress (Bita Badran), Best Director (Ebrahim Hatamikia), Best Music (Majid Entezami), Best Screenwriter (Ebrahim Hatamikia), and Best Film Editor (Hayedeh Safiyari). It was nominated in three other categories.

References
  1. Vara Honar Film Company - The Glass Agency
  2. Naficy, Hamid (2012). A Social History of Iranian Cinema, Volume 4: The Globalizing Era, 1984–2010. Durham: Duke University Press. p. 28. ISBN 9780822348665.
  3. York, Geoffrey (13 March 1998). "Iranian film a symbol of cultural thawing". The Globe and Mail. p. 7. ProQuest 384708229
  4. Entry in New York Times Movie Section - The New York Times

Further reading
  • Rastegar, Kamran (2010). "The Glass Agency: Iranian War Veterans as Heroes or Traitors?". In Thiranagama, Sharika; Kelly, Tobias (eds.). Traitors: Suspicion, Intimacy, and the Ethics of State-Building. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. pp. 188–199. ISBN 9780812205893.
  • Zeydabadi-Nejad, Saeed (2009). The Politics of Iranian Cinema: Film and Society in the Islamic Republic. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. pp. 69–76. ISBN 9780415455374.


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