Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts with the label "arab cinema"

Middle Eastern Cinema

"The 20-year evolution of modern independent Middle Eastern cinema has been exciting, unpredictable, and in some cases, awe-inspiring. A few masterpieces have been made, such as Ala Eddine Slim’s  Tlamess ; Shahram Mokri's  Fish & Cat ; and Annemarie Jacir’s  Wajib . Documentary filmmaking has experienced a major leap in form (see for example the likes of Suhaib Gasmelbari's  Talking About Trees ; and Raed Andoni's  Ghost-hunting ). And film-makers have gained the confidence and experience that previous generations lacked. But foreign money and international exposure have come at a price: the subject matter of films has become repetitive; simplistic liberal politics have become mandatory; and formal experimentation has become a gimmick rather than genuine artistic expression. People tell stories partially to redress historical silences, but if the stories and the resulting images are so ubiquitous, then what’s the point? And if the message and sentiments of

Arab Cinema

Article Western critics too often overlook the contribution of Arab women behind the camera
Arab cinema In Papisha soon the "high energy wears off, as the story descends into repugnant cliches and orientalist pigeonholes. Meddour's world view is black and white: all men are bad, nearly all religious people are blood-thirsty monsters, and all the liberal-minded girls are valiant heroines. There is no subtlety in her characterisations nor hint of intelligence in how she tackles Islamic radicalism, which is personified by a bunch of liberal men-hating women and women obsessed with having every girl in the country veiled.  On the evidence of   Papicha , Meddou's world view comes over as little different from the average white Western film-maker in its antagonistic stance against non-white masculinity, a toxic feminist stance which frowns down on anyone who does not share its ideals. By a long margin,   Papicha  was the low point of the Arab selection at Cannes this year." Review of seven new Arab films " Cannes, after all, is an awfully cl
"Jinn  is a lazy, by-the-numbers drama with no real insight into Jordanian teenage lives, no position on modern Jordanian society and no redeeming artistic vision.  Bou Chaaya and Matalqa show no knack for directing actors and fail to convey their characters’ existential ennui in a country grappling with a sense of identity. They briefly touch upon class, but never fully explore the subject. Everything in  Jinn  feels like a carbon copy of tired American formulas, including the basic arcs of the characters and their inner conflicts, their relationship with one another; and even the brand of horror that blends the grisly with the supernatural. Nothing feels authentic, emotionally real or believable." Note: kissing in Egyptian movies was not uncommon. One can see that in the 1970s-1980 movies, for example . Netflix in the Middle East: how Jinn became a nightmare
Classical Syrian cinema The film was released in 1972 and based on a story by Haydar Haydar, a prominent Syrian writer and Arab nationalist. The events of the film/story take place in the aftermath of the formal independence of Syria. The film is subtitled in English.