Hollywood Coverage 11/5/2015 1 Title: Skyscraper Heavens Author: John Rubens Genre: Historical Fiction Setting: Middle Eastern nation of Baug Pages: 198 Period: 1950’s – 1970’s, present day Best Medium for Adaptation: – Feature Film Documentary Alternative/reality TV series (adult); Dramady TV series/ Webseries. Logline: A researcher in the Middle Eastern country of Baug, a fictionalized version of Iran, compiles a detailed account of the nation’s turbulent political transition to an Islamic Republic. Brief Summary Researcher Khalid watches a series of DVDs and interviews his two knowledgeable advisors to assemble a complete picture of the political history of the nation of Baug from the 1950’s to the late 1970’s. In the 1950’s, Western nations facilitate a coup in Baug in hopes of more favorable oil trade agreements. Amir, the royal dictator who seizes power, becomes increasingly oppressive and unpopular over the next two decades. At the same time, ambitious cleric Babak gains influence and spurs the people to a violent revolution. Babak institutes a puppet government that effectively allows him and his fellow clerics to control the country. He comes in as a hero of the people, but soon begins to resort to many of the same oppressive techniques as Amir in order to stay in power. International incidents ensue and new rebel factions continue to arise, leading to more strife and death. Synopsis Researcher KHALID is commissioned by his employers at a major oil conglomerate to compile a comprehensive account of the events surrounding the 1978 revolution that led the nation of Baug to become an Islamic Republic. Khalid is aided in his efforts by the jovial JAHAN and his comely, flirtatious cousin JALEH, who help to fill in the blanks left by the extensive collection of historical documentaries that Khalid watches on DVD. In the 1950’s, an ineffective and unpopular democratic government under Prime Minister RAHMAT held a tenuous grip on power in Baug. Powerful industrialized nations like Sargon, Jahangir and Xerxes all desired Baug’s oil reserves and hoped for a more favorable regime with whom to trade. Economic embargoes and covert foreign dealings lead to a coup that removes Rahmat from power. Several factions vie for control, but it is royal AMIR who ends up on top. Amir makes some concessions to the West in exchange for their aid while consolidating his power within Baug. He establishes a powerful organization of secret police to enforce his will using whatever means are deemed necessary. Sargonian President KINNET pushes for improved human rights worldwide, including in Baug. Some beneficial reforms begin to take shape, though the Baugi CLERICS oppose certain changes that they believe to go against the tenets of Muslim faith. Ayatollah BABAK, a rising star amongst the Baugi clergy, is one of the most outspoken and influential voices. After Kinnet’s assassination, the socially progressive momentum in Baug tapers off considerably. Two unpopular puppet prime ministers preside over a period of economic stagnation and rampant inflation within the country. Widespread bureaucratic corruption and incompetence compromises many public services. Oppressed minorities plead for government aid that never arrives, and the rest of the nation begins to notice. As social unrest spreads, Amir’s secret police grow increasingly brazen and brutal with their crackdowns. Amir tightens his control of the government, and his clear show of force sows enough fear to keep the populace in line for a time. However, Babak has risen to the rank of Imam, and as such his word is considered holy, enabling him to speak out against Amir without fear of legal repercussions. His word spreads across Baug, spurring the people towards rising up against Amir’s tyranny. In 1978, following government attacks on clerics, the populace reaches its breaking point and open revolt erupts. The educated students, businessmen and industrialists lead one faction, while the clergy rally the uneducated peasantry into a second group and take to the streets. Amir institutes martial law, but his threats no longer hold the people in check. In one of the most infamous incidents of the revolution, nearly a million demonstrators swarm the capital and sit in protest. Government forces open fire on the crowd, killing four thousand civilians, according to some estimates. As Amir’s authority crumbles, military units stand down from their harsh peacekeeping measures and political prisoners are allowed to walk free. Babak skillfully uses his Imam status to garner power, orchestrating the appointment of faithful officials to governmental and business/industrial positions. Those less receptive to his influence he accuses of harboring Sargonian sympathies and systematically discredits and removes. Babak is received as a virtual demigod; his word is followed by millions of fanatics. Guerrilla fighting in the streets wipes away the last vestiges of Amir’s military control. The former ruler himself has by this time fled into exile. Babak shrewdly orders the disarmament of many of the informal rebel factions, foreseeing that their guns could soon be pointed in his direction. Almost immediately, Babak pushes for the institution of a strict Islamic court system to preside over society, which proves to be a tricky adjustment for a nation accustomed to a more conventional (albeit flawed) legal system. Also, non-religious revolutionaries like the idealistic communists, who were so instrumental in Babak’s rise to power, quickly begin to see themselves marginalized and oppressed by his policies. A disdain for anything resembling “Western Democracy” is instilled in the people, and a push is made to transform Baug into an Islamic Republic. The clergy seize the wealth and possessions of many of the wealthiest citizens, claiming to redistribute the wealth according to God’s will, but often keeping it for themselves. Donations are solicited from the general population and deposited to a pair of official accounts. Though funds are promised to aid the plight of the poor, the new government completely fails to follow through on that promise, and no money in the second of the official accounts is ever applied for its intended charitable purposes. The wealthy and less pro-Babak outer provinces of Kouros and Bahadur attempt to break away and resist the control of the new regime, but are met with a harsh and overwhelming military response to make them fall in line. The voice of journalistic dissent is also quashed by the government. On a few occasions, Babak is tripped up by the apparent contradictions between his political agenda and the established doctrine and philosophy of the Quran. Even Babak’s superior DARIEN publicly criticizes the practice of clergy taking a role in secular government, but Babak’s political clout is too great to be derailed. A national referendum to grant the new government legitimacy is rigged so severely that the results are farcical at best. An assembly of the Baugi Democratic Front is violently dispersed. Loyal clerics are placed in charge of industries and businesses, and their incompetence at running their assigned operations leads to a disastrous slump in domestic production and a dire shortage of many foods and essential goods. Despite promises to the contrary, Babak eventually institutes martial law to quell civil unrest, following in the footsteps of his rival and predecessor. An angry mob of fanatical zealots, mostly students, take the bold step of seizing the Sargonian embassy, holding 52 foreign diplomats and civilians hostage. This catapults Baug onto the world stage and leads to some very thorny political tensions, both internationally and within Baug. Sargon’s economic sanctions and deportation policies for Baugi students studying within its borders prove ineffectual or counterproductive, and Xerxes is quick to step in and capitalize on those blunders in order to gain an edge in its ongoing standoff with Sargon. Babak’s government recommissions the secret police, which is staffed by many of the same deviously skilled individuals who served under Amir and did his dirty work. Universities are transformed into seminaries preparing students for priesthood. Hard sciences are abandoned in favor of theology. Students revolt against the shift, but they are violently put down by official government forces and loyalist vigilantes alike. There is a disastrously unsuccessful rescue attempt by the Sargonian military to free the embassy hostages. The hostages are finally freed just as the ineffectual president DAUBER is replaced by his successor NOLAN. Amir dies of cancer while still in exile. The decades that follow see a painstakingly slow improvement in Baugi relations with Sargon. Over the course of his research project, Khalid gets to know Jahan and Jaleh, and develops a strong and largely unspoken infatuation with the latter, despite his marriage to wife ZAREEN. Other than a bit of flirtation, nothing ever transpires between them, and they all ultimately part as friends when Khalid’s assignment is completed. The complicated political upheaval in Iran is a topic that is rife with dramatic potential and remains relevant to current events. The complexities of the subject lead many casual consumers of world news and history to tune out, so presenting this information in a way that is both engaging and enlightening is a worthy goal. As luck would have it, this is the very aim of Skyscraper Heavens. Presenting the Iran story as a fictionalized account with all of the names of places and people changed is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it means that the audience must connect the dots to figure out the real-world counterparts to the players in the fictional drama, making it more difficult for the uninitiated to absorb the historical facts. On the other hand, a fictionalized account gives the story free rein to play around with the nitty-gritty specifics and distill the history down to its most essential elements. Rather than dwelling on the trivia of the revolution, the story of Baug can explore the underlying belief systems, egos and sociological factors that contribute to the conflict. Ideally, removing Iran from the Iran story should allow the audience to set aside their preconceived notions of the situation and absorb it all with fresh eyes. In this respect, the less that Baug looks and feels like Iran, the better off the film would be. In the end, it is a cautionary tale about civil unrest, bureaucratic corruption, and the delicate interaction between church and state. The book’s instinct to frame the historical account within a present-day narrative of modern citizens looking back and learning from history is a smart choice. There is a fair amount of historical ground to cover, so a bit of perspective courtesy of an outside observer helps. However, Khalid and his companions should be more than simply passive observers. It should be clear to the audience why they are looking back at this history and how their findings can be positively applied to their world as a result. Following their story also presents the opportunity to jump forward in time and see the outcome of the historical events twenty or thirty years down the road.
Posted on November 7, 2015 by johnrubens
Skyscraper Heavens (2015) by John Rubens Softcover ISBN: 9781514404348 eBook ISBN: 9781514404331
JOHN RUBENS is no Mother Teresa. 