Struggle on the Nile: Three Tough Guys and a Dame in Egypt
In Struggle on the Nile, a 1959 movie from the golden age of Egyptian cinema, you will encounter a young …
Category Archives: Middle East
A Citizen, A Detective & A Thief: Comic Relief in Egyptian Cinema
Up to this film I was prepared to believe Egyptian movies only dealt with serious matters in serious ways. Adrift …
The Nightingale’s Prayer – An Egyptian Movie Classic
The Egyptian classic, titled either The Curlew’s Cry or The Nightingale’s Prayer, depending on the translator, will not be for …
Nawal El Saadawi: Still in the Mix in Cairo at 80
Nick Kristof in one of his posts from Tahrir Square in Cairo, talks about a hero of his, Dr. Nawal …
Adrift on the Nile — a Novel of Egypt by Naguib Mahfouz
I came to Naguib Mahfouz’s novel Adrift on the Nile after having seen the movie of the same name. As …
Adrift on The Nile – A Film from Egypt, Mahfouz
Adrift on the Nile is a 1971 film from Egypt, directed by Hussein Kamal, who has some 10 movies to his …
The Sand Fish – a Novel from Dubai
The Sand Fish, a novel by Maha Gargash of Dubai, apparently written in English, is another of the suggestions for …
Women’s Prison — Iran
Quite unlike any women-in-prison movie you might have seen, or contemplated seeing, Manijeh Hekmat’s 2002 Women’s Prison, from Iran offers no …
The Thief and the Dogs by Naguib Mahfouz, Egypt
I wrote last week about an Egyptian novel, Stealth, by Sonallah Ibrahim, which while I liked I felt presented certain …
The Day I Became a Woman – A Film from Iran
What an unexpected, unusual and brain shaping movie. The Day I Became a Woman is Marzieh Makhmalbaf‘s first film in …
Stealth a Novel by Sonallah Ibrahim, Egypt
Ignorance of Arabic writing in the West might only be exceeded by ignorance of that of any particular nationality in …
Baran: A Movie of Afghan Immigrants to Iran
Baran, another very fine movie from Iranian master Majid Majidi [see reviews of his Color of Paradise and The Song …