TEHRAN – The restored versions of “Flying in the Night” by Rasul Mollaqolipur and “The Fateful Day” by Shahram Asadi have been screened in Tehran, Mashhad and Shiraz, the Farabi Cinema Foundation has announced.

The movies have been restored by the National Film Archive of Iran and are being screened at Tehran’s Azadi Cineplex, Vilajtourist Cinema in Mashhad and Honare Shahre Aftab Cineplex in Shiraz. 

The films, which revolve around religious stories, have been selected to mark the Muharram mourning season for the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein (AS) and his companions who were killed in Karbala in 680 CE. 

“Flying in the Night” won the Crystal Simorgh for best film at the 5th Fajr International Film Festival in 1986.

The film centers on an Iranian battalion that is surrounded by the enemy during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war. The battalion’s connection to the headquarters is cut off. Four soldiers are selected to go to the headquarters to bring help, and three of them are martyred. The commander decides to prepare water for the injured soldiers, but he is also martyred. Auxiliary forces arrive, fight with the enemy, and save the other remaining soldiers.
 
“The Fateful Day” is an adaptation of a play by Bahram Beizai on the Karbala tragedy directed in 1995.

The film is the story of a Christian man who converts to Islam for the love of a Muslim girl. At the wedding, he hears voices calling for help. He leaves the ceremony and takes a journey to Karbala. But he arrives the end of the Battle of Karbala after the martyrdom of Imam Hussein (AS) and his companions.

Photo: A scene from “The Fateful Day” by Shahram Asadi.

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