A wide range of Egyptian films dominate the Arabic-language selection in Venice this year, including two feature debuts – by Khaled Mansour and Muhammed Hamdy – that represent new directions in Egyptian cinema.
The Egyptian uprising captured at Venice Film Festival
Mansour is the director of the endearing, crowd-pleasing film Seeking Haven for Mr. Rambo. The story concerns a taciturn security guard whose best friend is the eponymous dog, played by two different but similarly trained dogs.
Operating on the more experimental edge of cinema is “Perfumed With Mint,” also playing in TIFF’s Wavelength section. Veteran cinematographer Hamdy (“The Square”) makes a metaphorical film that represents a generation infected with doubts about what lies ahead.
The provocative drama “Happy Holidays” marks the first solo foray by Palestinian director Scandar Copti (“Ajami”), while “Sudan, Remember Us” is a political documentary by French-Tunisian-Moroccan journalist and documentary filmmaker Hind Meddeb. Both films will also screen at the Toronto Film Festival.
