'Axis of evil' films to screen in US

'Axis of evil' films to screen in US

Iranian film A Time for Drunken Horses will be shown

A series of films from countries deemed by President George Bush as "the axis of evil" are to be screened in the US.

North Korea and Iran will be represented at Duke University in North Carolina's film series.

The Reel Evil series will screen movies from six countries to give viewers an insight into rarely seen cultures as the US faces the prospect of war.

Libya, Cuba and Syria, which were dubbed "rogue states" by Washington, will also be represented.

"I'd urge everyone who believes in cultural dialogue - and particularly those who don't - to come and submerge themselves in these works of art from the very places that some in the United States would like to bomb out of sight and out of existence," said professor Ariel Dorfman.

Iranian film A Time for Drunken Horses is set in a Kurdish village where six young children struggle to survive following the death of their parents.

Comedy

But not all the films are gritty dramas.

Cuba's contribution is the comedy Plaff! Demasiado miedo a la vida, meaning Splat! - Too Afraid of Life, while the Syrian entry, The Extras, is a romantic tale of young love under the watchful eye of protective families.

"We know how Bush sees 'the axis of evil.' How does someone from within that Axis see his or her own everyday life?," said series co-curator Negar Mottahedeh, assistant professor of literature at Duke.

The series begins on 26 February and runs until April.

After the series concludes organisers are planning to present a rare US screening of 11'09'01, a controversial collection of international films relating to the 11 September terrorist attacks.