Transformed Image of Women in New Iranian Cinema in Post-1979

The main target of this study is the analysis of the filmic representation of Iranian women in a time span of almost 40 years based on a feminist viewpoint with the main focus being laid upon the Post-Revolutionary cinema. The core of the discussion is the examination of an essential historical paradox, where a supposedly liberating revolution creates many kinds of strict limitations, which could not in turn eliminate women but to some extend transforms filmic representation of Iranian women. The clashes of tradition and transformation create an atmosphere in which the discursive and filmic representation of women changes during time. Additionally, this study analyses the way by which the patriarchal power structure genders women to frame the concept of an ideal woman, while women‘s resistance against this power poses serious question to the patriarchal hierarchy of society. The final findings indicate that while female characters of Post-Revolutionary films are empowered, they are still silent and unable to reverse the patriarchal structures. In order to demonstrate a historical shift in representation of women in the mentioned time span, four films of Post 1979 revolution are analyzed from a socio-political and historical point of view: The Mare (1984), Sara (1993), Gilaneh (2005), and Final Whistle (2011).