We can learn a lot from history about the nature of power – especially if it’s in the form of an absorbing film. Decadence and Downfall: The Shah of Iran’s Ultimate Party’ is one such film that tells an engaging tale of how those in power seek self-aggrandisement, believe in their own lies, and dig their political graves.
Weaving together archival footage and interviews with a range of people, the British Iranian director, Hassan Amini, skilfully narrates an extraordinary story.
In October 1971, at a time when more than fifty per cent of Iran’s population was below the poverty line, Mohamad Reza Shah Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran, the self-styled Shahanshah (meaning King of Kings), decided to host a grand gala at Persepolis, the ancient capital of the Persian empire, ostensibly to commemorate 2500 years of Iran’s history. The real reason, however, was to present himself to the world as a mirror image of Cyrus the Great, the founder of the Persian Empire. It was propaganda overdrive aimed at showing him as a larger than life figure.
The guest list to the Shah’s party included the who’s who of the world’s elite. As a reporter for an American news network puts it:
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