Muhammad in film
Autor: VALDEMIR | Publicado: 2016-08-31T11:55:00-07:00


Muhammad in film

Valdemir Mota de Menezes

&nbsp;

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The depiction of Muhammad, the Islamic Prophet, in film (as with other visual depictions) is a controversial topic both within and outside of Islam. The Quran does not explicitly forbid images of Muhammad, but there are a few hadith
 (supplemental teachings) which have explicitly prohibited Muslims from 
creating visual depictions of figures. There is a split on this issue 
between the two major denominations of Islam, Sunni and Shia Islam.

Most Sunni Muslims believe that visual depictions of all the prophets of Islam should be prohibited[1] and are particularly averse to visual representations of Muhammad.[2] In 1926, Egyptian actor Youssef Wahbi was in discussions to play Muhammad in a film financed by the Turkish government under Atatürk. When the Sunni Islamic Al-Azhar University
 in Cairo heard about it, scholars there released a fatwa stipulating 
that Islam forbids the depiction of Muhammad on screen and King Fuad
 then sent a severe warning to the actor, threatening to exile him and 
strip him of his Egyptian nationality. As a result of the controversy, 
the film was abandoned.[3]

In Shia Islam, scholars historically were also against such 
depictions, but have taken a more relaxed view over the years and images
 of Muhammad are quite common nowadays.[2] A fatwa given by Ali al-Sistani, the Shi'a marja of Iraq, states that it is permissible to depict Muhammad, even in television or movies, if done with respect.[4]





Contents


1 Notable films

1.1 The Message
1.2 Muhammad: The Last Prophet
1.3 Future projects


2 List of films
3 See also
4 References
5 Further reading



Notable films

The Message

Main article: Mohammad, Messenger of God
Mohammad, Messenger of God, released in the US as The Message,
 was the first major film about Muhammad. The film was released on 
January 1, 1976 and on July 29 of the same year it had its premiere in 
"Plaza", a London
 cinema. There are two versions of the movie, an English one and an Arab
 one. The Arab version had also its premiere in a London cinema, Curzon,
 on August 19, 1976. Both versions were screened till September 29. So 
the English version was shown for nine weeks, and the Arab version for 
six weeks.

When director Mustafa Akkad (1935-2005) was shooting the film, he made use of an American cast and an Egyptian cast. In the English version Anthony Quinn played Hamza, Michael Ansara Muhammad's principal opponent Abu Sufyan,
 and Irene Papas Abu Sufyan's wife Hind. In the Arab version these roles
 were played by Egyptian actors. However, in a number of overall shots, 
in which a large group is acting, such as the Battle of Badr, it can be heard that the scene is shot only once, as the actors shout "Allahu Akbar", whereas in other similar scenes the director opted for "God is great".

Although the movie is about Muhammad, the director decided to shoot 
the film so as to not depict Muhammad. Akkad frequently changed the 
position of the camera at moments when Muhammad would be brought into 
vision. When Muhammad was essential to a scene, the camera would show 
events from his point of view.[5]

The Message became very popular, not the least in the circles of Muslims, for example in Africa, and Asia. Even so, two well-known fatwas from Al-Azhar University and Shiite Council of Lebanon were issued about The Message.


It is certainly probable that this is not the result of the 
creativity of the filmmakers but of the rules announced by the Islamic 
scholars of the Azhar and the Shia Council of Lebanon, who prohibited 
any representation of Muhammad's wives as well as of Muhammad himself.[5]



Muhammad: The Last Prophet
Muhammad: The Last Prophet is an animated film produced by Badr International according to the same principles as "The Message". Its director is Richard Rich.
 The movie was released in 2004 and it was screened in a limited number 
of movie-theatres in the United States and the United Kingdom. The film 
focuses on the early period of Islam.


Future projects
There are some new films currently being produced about Muhammad, 
considered the "second of their kind" (referring to Western films 
respecting the portrayal of Muhammad).[6][7]

In October 2008, Producer Oscar Zoghbi, who worked on the original The Message, stated that he would shooting a remake called The Messenger of Peace, to be shot around the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.[7]

In October 2012, Iranian director Majid Majidi began shooting a film titled Muhammad: The Messenger of God
 with plans to show Muhammad on screen, though not his face, as per Shia
 tradition. The film world premier is set to 22 July 2015.[8]

Film producer Barrie M. Osborne has been hired as an adviser on a possible series of epics about Muhammad. The films, which are financed by a Qatari media company and will be supervised by the Egyptian cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi,
 are unlikely to depict Muhammad at all on screen as per Sunni tradition
 which sees all renderings of the prophets as blasphemous.[6][9]


List of films



Date
Production company
Title
Country of origin
References



September 3, 1977
Moustapha Akkad
The Message (or Mohammad, Messenger of God)
&nbsp;UK &nbsp;USA
[10][11]
[12][13]
[14][15]


November 14, 2004
Fine Media Group
Muhammad: The Last Prophet
&nbsp;USA
[16][17]
[18][19]
[20][21]


December 17, 2002
PBS
Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet
&nbsp;USA
[22][23]
[24][25]
[26][27]
[28]


Unknown
History Channel
Muhammad: Biography
&nbsp;UK
[29][30]


2000
March 5, 2005
PBS
Islam: Empire of Faith
&nbsp;USA
[31]
[32][33]
[34]


March 12, 2002
Mpi Home Video
Story of Islam
&nbsp;USA
[35]


September 25, 2006
Quantum Leaps; EDS
Understanding Islam - The Signs Of The Last Day
&nbsp;Turkey
[36]


2005
BBC (BBC Four)
An Islamic History of Europe
&nbsp;UK
[37][38]
[39]


May 2, 2004
BBC
A Muslim In The Family
&nbsp;UK
[40][41]
[42][43]


Unknown
BBC
The Smell of Paradise
&nbsp;UK
[44]


Unknown
Unknown
Why Did We Choose Islam - The Enlightenment




October 21, 2004
National Geographic
Inside Mecca
&nbsp;USA
[45]


Unknown
BBC
Me and the Mosque




March 2, 2006
Towers Productions
Secrets of the Koran - Decoding the Past
&nbsp;USA
[46]


Unknown
Unknown
Muhammad: A Mercy to Mankind

[47]


July 18, 2011
July 25, 2011
August 1, 2011
BBC (BBC Two)
The Life of Muhammad
&nbsp;UK
[48]


March 2015
Nurtaban Film Industry
Muhammad
&nbsp;Iran
[49]