A clash between people representing very different social strata electrifies the drama “19B,” the sixth feature from Egyptian helmer-writer Ahmad Abdalla, a progenitor of the new wave of independent Arab cinema in the early 2000s. Like his other films, “19B” deals with the changes taking place in contemporary Egypt and his characters’ struggle to find their place. The film claimed awards for best Arab film, cinematography and the international critics’ prize at the recent Cairo fest.
The story unfolds in an affluent Cairo neighborhood once filled with big homes and shady gardens, where an abandoned villa becomes derelict even as the building’s elderly caretaker clings to his makeshift life there. At the same time, on the street, the impoverished children of the new Egypt attempt to make their living in not altogether legal ways.
Like the building he believes he is guarding, the nameless old man has seen better days.
The story unfolds in an affluent Cairo neighborhood once filled with big homes and shady gardens, where an abandoned villa becomes derelict even as the building’s elderly caretaker clings to his makeshift life there. At the same time, on the street, the impoverished children of the new Egypt attempt to make their living in not altogether legal ways.
Like the building he believes he is guarding, the nameless old man has seen better days.
- 11/30/2022
- by Alissa Simon
- Variety Film + TV
It appears that we’ve got our first dud of the fest in only day 2 by way of Yousry Nasrallah‘s After the Battle. While we can admire the quick shooting pace of the filmmaker (this is based on the events that occurred on Tahrir Square early in 2011) the film starring Nahed El Sebaï, Bassem Samra and Menna Shalabi failed to impress our panel. Baad el Mawkeaa is Nasrallah’s 9th feature film (8 works of fiction and one documentary) and this counts as his fourth visit to the Croisette. Click to enlarge!
- 5/17/2012
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Nasrallah tackles Tahrir Uprising Barely a Year Later, Will Suffer his own Battle Scars
Taking as its topic the Tahrir Square uprising in February 2011, Yousry Nasrallah’s After the Battle is a melodramatic soap opera has McLuhan-esque formal pretensions and leaves viewers more defeated than fired up. Characters weak and empowered alike have argument after argument over seemingly every social issue in Egypt as it relates to the Mubarek regime’s influence, a fundamental flaw in the script that reduces what should be living, breathing humans into non-descript participants in what resembles the world’s most disorganized debate tournament. When someone does engage in an aspect of life that could be considered banal, it’s quickly escalated to an nth degree of tension and screaming, as if Nasrallah were worried his audience was getting bored with it. Just narratively disjointed enough to be certifiably unconventional, there is little to justify...
Taking as its topic the Tahrir Square uprising in February 2011, Yousry Nasrallah’s After the Battle is a melodramatic soap opera has McLuhan-esque formal pretensions and leaves viewers more defeated than fired up. Characters weak and empowered alike have argument after argument over seemingly every social issue in Egypt as it relates to the Mubarek regime’s influence, a fundamental flaw in the script that reduces what should be living, breathing humans into non-descript participants in what resembles the world’s most disorganized debate tournament. When someone does engage in an aspect of life that could be considered banal, it’s quickly escalated to an nth degree of tension and screaming, as if Nasrallah were worried his audience was getting bored with it. Just narratively disjointed enough to be certifiably unconventional, there is little to justify...
- 5/16/2012
- by Blake Williams
- IONCINEMA.com
The director: Yousry Nasrallah (Egyptian, 59 years old) The talent: I admit defeat. After scouring the internet for details of the cast and crew of this one, all I can tell you is that it stars Nahed El Sebaï (one of the lead actresses from Egyptian feminist drama "678," which netted a number of prizes on the smaller festival circuit last year), Bassem Samra (a longstanding collaborator of the director, acclaimed for his turn in Nasrallah's laurelled 1999 film "El Medina") and Menna Shalabi (whose 12-year filmography contains, I confess, no titles I recognize). I can't even locate a screenplay credit...
- 5/9/2012
- by Guy Lodge
- Hitfix
Here in the United States the phrase “sexual harassment” generally makes one think of the kind of office-set scandals that plaster tabloid pages and are featured in Lifetime movies. However, in the gripping Egyptian drama 678 the phrase takes on a much more encompassing and shocking definition.
Shortly after the resignation of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, the story of reporter Lara Logan’s sexual assault became international news, drawing an eye to a culture of misogyny and abuse that some Egyptian women face every day. Logan, who was covering the political turmoil for CBS, was separated from her crew in the dense crowds and was subsequently beaten and sexually assaulted by a group of rioters. While the attack itself was shocking, the response of some news reporters was still more harrowing. Many outlets mentioned Lara’s attractiveness while reporting on her attack and implied that she somehow had it coming. You...
Shortly after the resignation of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, the story of reporter Lara Logan’s sexual assault became international news, drawing an eye to a culture of misogyny and abuse that some Egyptian women face every day. Logan, who was covering the political turmoil for CBS, was separated from her crew in the dense crowds and was subsequently beaten and sexually assaulted by a group of rioters. While the attack itself was shocking, the response of some news reporters was still more harrowing. Many outlets mentioned Lara’s attractiveness while reporting on her attack and implied that she somehow had it coming. You...
- 3/25/2011
- by Kristy Puchko
- The Film Stage
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