The movie business in Egypt (page 1 of 3)

Egypt, once the Hollywood of the Arab world, is now a mere shadow of its former self. At its peak, Egypt made 80 films a year. By the late 1990s, it managed just 15. Movies are made by other Arab nations, but the Arab movie industry remains essentially the Egyptian movie industry.

Egypt's movie industry peaked in the 1950s, with internationally successful films, including a string of musicals featuring singers such as Muhammad Abd al-Wahhab and Umm Kulthum. Old films like these and comedies starring the likes of Ismail Yassin are shown and reshown on television channels throughout the region.

These films have become classics and their stars screen legends. Egypt's most celebrated director, Youssef Chahine, rose to prominence around this time with serious films such as The Blazing Sky (1953) and Cairo Station (1958). But when Nasser came to power in 1954, Egypt began moving towards socialism, and the movie industry suffered. By the end of Nasser's rule in 1970, the industry was in a sorry state and has never fully recovered.

Nevertheless, the Egyptian film industry is still the biggest in the Arab world. "There is no comparison between Egypt and other Arab countries in terms of the volume of production," says Inas al-Deghedy, a prominent Egyptian director. Only two or three films a year come from Tunisia, Morocco and Syria. "And these films are most likely co-productions with Belgium, France or another European country," she adds. "This does not really count as an industry."

The quality of filmmaking is another problem. "Poor quality movies are a reflection of economic difficulties," says al-Deghedy. "People are not looking for movies that explore important issues; they are trying to escape the economic situation. That is why comedians dominate the industry at the moment." The insatiable appetite for comedy also derives from the seemingly perpetual political conflicts in the region. Egyptians want a powerful antidote to reality. And they certainly get it: formulaic comedies that are crass, unsubtle and predictable farces or simply the most slapstick of slapstick comedy.

"Why should people go out and pay money to see bad films," asked Samuel Goldwyn, "when they can stay at home and see bad television for nothing?" In the 1980s, Egyptian studios shifted production to TV dramas. By the mid-1990s, close to 80 percent of Egyptian film studios were leased out to television stations. Actors and actresses prefer to act in TV series, particularly those that are shown during the lucrative advertising month of Ramadan.

Goldwyn also said, "A wide screen just makes a bad film twice as bad." Crammed into a TV, a bad movie does not seem so bad, and were he living today Goldwyn might suggest the best thing for the Egyptian film industry is to confine itself to small-screen movies and dramas until it finds new inspiration.
Chahine used to provide that inspiration, and has been Egypt's premier director for decades.

The consensus is that his recent films are not as good as his earlier ones. According to al-Deghedy, "Every director peaks in middle age. He will then start on a second career curve of generally lower quality - and occasionally good - films. You can never judge a director by just one film, you have to consider all his past work and experience." Chahine won a special prize at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival for his film Destiny.

Younger generations of directors are now following in Chanine's footsteps, including al-Deghedy. "We do have a lot of well-educated directors and technicians who are knowledgeable about the cinema," she says.