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Cairo Station (1958) VHS AFD 023

(Spoiler alert)

The urban poor of post-colonial Egypt stand at the center of Joussef Chahine’s dark masterpiece, Cairo Station. The characters central to the story remain in focus for the entire film, while the hectic setting of Cairo’s main train station bustles around them. The constantly shifting, moving surroundings reflect the themes of movement, change and the mixing of cultures which appear in the film. Western clothing, dress, ideas are all presented in passing within the station and on its trains, themselves a product of British colonialism. Meanwhile, distinctly traditional social groups cluster within the structure and maintain closely knit communities. From Islamic religious figures to women’s rights groups, a wealth of different, conflicting characters and attitudes appear, usually in passing and often with unclear messages and relations to the western technologies surrounding them.

When addressing the issue of the portrayal of western culture within the film, there exists an ambivalence which is not easily resolved or understood. Clearly the western-style train station, as a harbor for the urban poor and as the primary means of transportation within Cairo, maintains the livelihood of many characters within the film. Yet it is the portrayals of women, and female sexuality in a typically western magazine-fashion that drives the main character, Qinawi, into obsession and eventual insanity. This could clearly be interpreted as a criticism of the western willingness to portray sexuality in order to turn profit, and the means by which sexuality, specifically western-style sexuality, can become dangerous, or lead to violent mental illness.

If western standards of sexuality are to be seen as dangerous for an Egyptian man, then the film’s social commentary rests on the negative impact of western influences, yet if we see Qinawi as simply an unstable character from the beginning, who was merely susceptible to any violent influences, the social commentary lightens. After Qinawi’s employer, Farid, mentions a brutal murder in Egypt, Qinawi quickly changes his mood, quieting down and becomes visibly uneasy. Clearly this news influences Qinawi, and he leaves quickly to buy a large knife to develop his violent plans. This action does directly not support the argument that western influences were corrupting Qinawi, rather it implies that he needed only the idea of violence in order to commit murder. Furthermore, one of the few and short-lived joyous moments in the film is fueled by Hanuma dancing with western style rockabilly musicians on a train. In this scene, the music and the cheerful dancing counters the uneasy gaze of Qinawi, as Hanuma clearly attempts to neutralize tensions with the deranged man through offering him free soda. To this end western influences can be seen in a more positive light, where music and dance lightens to mood and lifts the character’s spirits.

Joussef Chahine’s complex portrayal of insanity within the post-colonial urban context defies simple categorization, leaving the viewer with a wealth of possible interpretations. I find that this film directly depicts modern Egypt without a specific negative or positive agenda, while maintaining a highly critical eye that focuses on the modern activities of lower-class Egyptians.

Destination Tokyo (DVD WHV 269)

Where’s the dividing line between cinematic escapism and wartime propagandizing? Shouldn’t an effective—as in manipulative—piece of wartime propaganda inspire a citizenry to re-double their efforts to defeat the enemy du jour? And shouldn’t an effective—as in manipulative, again—piece of cinematic escapism temporarily lobotomize the viewer into a laconic stupor? They may seem like opposites a first—fervent vs. stupefied—but both share a common goal: beguiling the viewing into a state of non-reflexivity.

With Destination Tokyo (1943), propagandist and escapist tendencies merge for a jingoistic underwater adventure. In this, Cary Grant’s only wartime movie, the submarine U.S.S. Copperfin sets off from SF for a secret reconnaissance mission of Tokyo Bay. This mission, in turn, gives Doolittle’s Raiders the info needed to inflict maximum punishment on the Imperial Fleet. Through a combination of racist rhetoric, diminutive special effects, an essentialized crew (e.g., hothead, rookie recruit, womanizer), and bombs-bombs-bombs, an escapist/propagandist haze reigns that makes no mention, of course, of the estimated 250,000 innocent Chinese that were killed by the Japanese as a result of the raids, or of the six Japanese schools that were accidentally bombed by the Raiders. So why watch it? Will it provide a lens through which we can better focus on today’s escapist, propagandist, and non-reflexive cinematic consumables?

The Sheik - 1921

In George Melford’s The Sheik (1921) the viewer is presented with a wealth of western orientialist clichés and stereotypes that must have appeared standard for the era. This silent adventure-romance, though set in the desert town of Biskra, remains vague as to its exact location within the French Middle Eastern colonies. The film unabashedly bases it’s wealth of generalizations on negative and often absurd portrayals and Arab culture or dress. While the actual town of Biskra sits in modern-day Algeria, a former French colony, the town itself lies within a complex region dominated by Berber, Turkish and Arab influences. None of these complexities fit within the simplified image placed forward in the film, which simply refers to all the explicitly non-western peoples as Arabs.

The portrayal of so-called Arab culture within the film may appear comical to some modern viewers, yet it is representative of an orientalizing impulse that appears throughout western literature and the arts of the time. As Edward Said, within the introduction of his groundbreaking work Orientalism writes: “…there emerged a complex Orient suitable for study in the academy, for displaying the museum, for reconstruction in the colonial office” This display, as illustrated in the film, could include harshly negative views of Arab culture as being barbaric, uncivilized, or cruel. The antagonizing forces within the film are Arab leaders and their henchmen. Furthermore, the Arab tribes never live within the city, and camp in the desert for no explicit purpose.

Sexuality and gender roles play a pivotal role within the film, driving the characters into their actions and defining their positions of power or submissiveness. The film largely capitalizes on the romantic, erotic and supposed barbaric elements within Arab culture, as defined through an orientalist framework. As Said makes note, cultural and racial generalizations on sexuality lead to “a great many Victorian pornographic novels [such as] The Lustful Turk”. The Sheik fulfills this orientist role as a lustful character, and he clearly asserts this along with a startling sexual dominance. After capturing Diana, the Sheik says to the distraught Diana :“I could make you love me”, clearly asserting his power of seduction and sexuality over the independent western woman.

The entire narrative revolves around this gradual shifting of power and gender roles, with the Shiek eventually re-affirming male dominance. Within the opening section of the film, Diana sees herself as clearly superior and more civilized than the Sheik, and at one point in the Casino, she draws a gun on the Sheik with a stern face and rigid posture. Within Biskra, she believes herself to be above the Sheik, yet after her capture by the Sheik in the desert, the roll reverses and Diana stays at the mercy of her captor, begging and crying before him, while eventually succumbing to his authority.

The Brotherhood of the Wolf DVD UNIV 204

The Brotherhood of the Wolf was not what I expected. I knew very little about it and had made my own judgments based on the fact that I knew it was 1) about Werewolves and 2) French. I had formulated an opinion that because it was French it would be a smarter better film than one about werewolves made in America. Wrong. I also assumed it would be about werewolves. Wrong again. Right off the bat I thought the movie was lame because the editor had slowed down the film so as to better see the crazy fight scene. But then I decided to stop being a snobby jerk and enjoy the movie. It was very entertaining and was a smarter than your average wolf/revenge of god movie. PLUS! Guess who plays the kick ass better than the stupid French Native American! Guess! THE CROW! That is right everyone who loved or pretended to love The Crow the TV series, Mark Dacascos has taken time out of his busy angsty schedule to help restore the balance between good and evil in 18th century France. All in all it was a good movie; it had good fight scenes and was deeper than your average mysterious beast slaughtering movies. I give it 3 out of 5.

Yellow Brick Road: A True Heartwarmer

Yellow Brick Road
DVD NVG 132

If watching a group of mentally disabled adults work to put on a stage production of The Wizard of Oz does not melt your heart, then I don’t know what will. And if it indeed does not, then I just have to say that you are a cold person who needs to spend more time with stuffed animals and rainbows. But I digress.

The film Yellow Brick Road, which has received a wide variety of awards at various independent film festivals (thereby proving its excellence), documents the four month-long process of Long Island’s ANCHOR (Answering the Needs of Citizens with Handicaps Through Organized Recreation) organization in their efforts to stage an extravagant production of the Wizard of Oz. Beginning with the announcements of everyone’s individual roles (which includes many joyful tears, excited jumps up and down and frantic phone calls to mom), the movie then goes on to depict the challenging rehearsals and the personal obstacles and triumphs that each actor works through, finally ending with the much-anticipated opening night.

Yellow Brick Road is certainly a film which will just make you feel good about life, which I think everyone needs once in awhile. Especially those cold-hearted people out there.

Written by Sarah

Cute Overload

The Film “Etre ed Avoir” or “To Be and to Have” DVD NYV 023 is perhaps the cutest film in our collection. This is as a result of our not having “Milo and Otis” which is the trump card of cute films. The film revolves around George Lopez, a teacher in a one room school house, and his students. The reasons it is so darn cute are as follows:

-The children, 3-11, are French and consequently speak French. Thus cuter being that is a well know fact that children speaking a language other than your own is cuter than children speaking your language. French speakers fear not these kids are cute enough on their own and do not need the heightened cuteness.

-One of the kids name is Jojo.

-One of the kids name is Axel.

-Lopez talks to the kids like they are adults.

-Kids driving tractors.

-When the kids are sledding one of them runs into another in a cute way not in a sad way.

-In the extras the children recite poetry. Cuteness ensues.

All cuteness aside this is a beautiful documentary about a wonderful teacher who is sure to inspire all those who work with kids especially those in the teaching field.

Reviewed by Anna