Muhammad: The Last Prophet | |
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Directed by | Richard Rich |
Written by | Brian Nissen |
Produced by | Richard Rich Terry L. Noss Thomas J. Tobin Mowafak El-Harthy |
Starring | Eli Allem Nicholas Kadi |
Narrated by | Brian Nissen |
Edited by | Joe Campana |
Music by | William Kidd |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Fine Media Group Badr International |
Release dates |
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Running time | 95 minutes |
Countries | United States Egypt Lebanon |
Languages | English Arabic Turkish |
Muhammad: The Last Prophet is a 2002 American animated religious epic film, [1] produced by Badr International and directed by Richard Rich. The movie was released in limited cinemas in the United States and the United Kingdom. The film focuses on the early days of Islam and Muhammad. [2]
In accordance with Islamic law and tradition, Muhammad and the first four caliphs (Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali) are not depicted in the film or any of its prequels. Scenes that include Muhammad are shown from his perspective, with his words paraphrased by the narrator. The film has been approved by the Council of Al-Azhar Al-Shareef (Islamic Research Academy in Egypt) and the Supreme Islamic Shiite Council of Lebanon.
All of the characters, such as the main character Malek and the rest of his family, are fictional.
The film has been dubbed into several languages including Arabic, French, Turkish and Malay. The dialogue of the Arabic version differs from the English version of the film, and the dialogue of the Arabic version is more consistent and similar with traditional Islamic historical narratives.
The film follows Muhammad's first years as a prophet starting with Islam's beginnings in Mecca in which the Muslims are persecuted, the exodus to Medina, and ending with the Muslims' triumphant return to Mecca. A number of crucial events, such as the Battle of Badr, the Battle of Uhud, the Battle of the Trench, and the Conquest of Mecca are depicted.
List of cast members and characters of this film, as well as the prequels:
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Three short prequels were released in 2012, all directed by Rich:
On Metacritic the film has a score of 47% based on reviews from 4 critics. [6]
Dana Stevens of The New York Times gave it 3 out of 5 and wrote: "Faithful to Islamic law's prohibition against representing its title character, this movie gives a prophet's-eye-view on the story." [7] [8] Maitland McDonagh of TV Guide gave it 2 out of 5 and described it as: "firmly within the long tradition of bland, upbeat and earnest religious instructional films." [9]
Muhammad was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monotheistic teachings of Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and other prophets. He is believed to be the Seal of the Prophets within Islam, with the Quran as well as his teachings and practices forming the basis for Islamic religious belief.
Medina, officially Al-Madinah al-Munawwarah and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah, is the capital of Medina Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia. One of the most sacred cities in Islam, the population as of 2022 is 1,411,599, making it the fifth-most populous city in the country. Around 58.5% of the population are Saudi citizens and 41.5% are foreigners. Located at the core of the Medina Province in the western reaches of the country, the city is distributed over 589 km2 (227 sq mi), of which 293 km2 (113 sq mi) constitutes the city's urban area, while the rest is occupied by the Hejaz Mountains, empty valleys, agricultural spaces and older dormant volcanoes.
The Battle of Badr took place in March 624 C.E., in the Arabia town of Badr between the Islamic prophet Muhammad-led Muslim army and a relief column of the Meccan Quraysh tribe. The latter had originally set out to protect their homeward-bound trade caravan that Muhammad was about to raid. Prior to this, Muhammad had ordered his followers to carry out several raids on Quraysh caravans, which, despite initial failures, finally succeeded in gaining their first plunder at Nakhla, when the Quraysh were observing a holy month forbidding them from shedding blood.
Al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib was a paternal uncle and sahabi (companion) of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, just three years older than his nephew. A wealthy merchant, during the early years of Islam he protected Muhammad while he was in Mecca, but only became a convert after the Battle of Badr in 624 CE (2 AH). His descendants founded the Abbasid dynasty in 750.
The Battle of the Trench, also known as the Battle of Khandaq and the Battle of the Confederates, was part of the conflict between the Muslims and the Quraysh, where this time the Quraysh took the offensive and advanced on the Muslims, who defended themselves in Medina by digging a trench around their settlement at the suggestion of Salman the Persian. The battle, which took place in 627 and lasted around two weeks, was lightly fought, with the Muslims reported to have suffered five to six casualties and the Quraysh three.
Salman al-Farisi was a Persian religious scholar and one of the companions of Muhammad. As a practicing Zoroastrian, he dedicated much of his early life to studying to become a magus, though he later became preoccupied with travelling throughout Western Asia to engage in interfaith dialogue with other religious groups. His quests eventually prompted his conversion to Christianity and later his conversion to Islam, which occurred after he met and befriended Muhammad in the city of Yathrib. He was a prominent non-Arab companion and one of Muhammad's closest friends; Muhammad had once stated to a gathering of his followers that he regarded Salman as a part of his family. In meetings with the other companions, he was often referred to by the kunyaAbu ʿAbdullah.
Zainab bint Muhammad was the eldest daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad by his first wife Khadijah.
The depiction of Islamic prophet Muhammad in film is a controversial topic both within and outside of Islam. Although the Quran does not explicitly forbid images of Muhammad, there are a few hadith which have explicitly prohibited Muslims from creating visual depictions of figures. Because the different branches of Islam use different Hadith collections, there is a split on this issue between the two major denominations of Islam, Sunni and Shia Islam.
The Message is a 1976 Islamic epic drama film directed and produced by Moustapha Akkad that chronicles the life and times of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, although he is never directly depicted. Mark Cousins in his The Story of Film: An Odyssey said The Message was "perhaps seen by as many people as have seen any film in cinema history."
Muhammad at Medina is a book about early Islam written by the non-Muslim Islamic scholar W. Montgomery Watt. Published at 418 pages by Oxford University Press in 1956, it is the sequel to Watt's 1953 volume, Muhammad at Mecca.
The Muhajirun were the converts to Islam and the Islamic prophet Muhammad's advisors and relatives, who emigrated from Mecca to Medina, the event is known in Islam as the Hijra. The early Muslims from Medina are called the Ansar ("helpers").
Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib is believed to be the Seal of the Prophets in all of the main branches of Islam. Muslims believe that the Quran, the central religious text of Islam, was revealed to Muhammad by God, and that Muhammad was sent to restore Islam, which they believe did not originate with Muhammad but is the true unaltered original monotheistic faith of Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and other prophets. The religious, social, and political tenets that Muhammad established with the Quran became the foundation of Islam and the Muslim world.
The Islamic prophet Muhammad came to the city of Medina following the migration of his followers in what is known as the Hijrah in 622. He had been invited to Medina by city leaders to adjudicate disputes between clans from which the city suffered. He left Medina to return to and conquer Mecca in December 629.
Uwaymir ibn Zayd ibn Qays al-Ansari, better known by the kunyaAbu al-Darda was a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad who was known for being a leading authority on and teacher of the Quran. He was the first qadi of Damascus. He was the husband of his fellow companion, Umm al-Darda.
According to Islam, animals are conscious of God. According to the Quran, they praise Him, even if this praise is not expressed in human language. Baiting animals for entertainment or gambling is prohibited. It is forbidden to kill any animal except for food or to prevent it from harming people.
Uthman ibn al-Huwayrith was an Arab of the Quraysh who was one of the four major hanifs during the time of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and converted to Christianity. After revolting against idol worship in Mecca in favor of monotheism during the late 6th century, he sought assistance from the Byzantine Empire in 590 in a ploy to install himself as king of Mecca. While in Byzantium, he converted to Christianity. He is also known for having compiled poetic works.
The Kaaba, sometimes referred to as al-Ka'ba al-Musharrafa is a stone building at the center of Islam's most important mosque and holiest site, the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It is considered by Muslims to be the Bayt Allah and is the qibla for Muslims around the world. The current structure was built after the original building was damaged by fire during the siege of Mecca by Umayyads in 683.
Ḥamza ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib was a foster brother, paternal uncle, maternal second-cousin, and companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
The Muslim–Quraysh War was a six-year military and religious war in the Arabian Peninsula between the early Muslims led by Muhammad on one side and the Arab pagan Quraysh tribe on the other. The war started in March 624 with the Battle of Badr, and concluded with the Conquest of Mecca.