Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 23 - 29 November 2000 Issue No.509
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875

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'A little story well told'

Lubna Abdel-Aziz was unforgettable in Al-Wisada Al-Khaliya. The face Abdel-Halim Hafez would see on his "empty pillow" every night embedded itself in the minds of a generation and, through regular reruns on TV, on the minds of the next. The film was a romantic classic. Indeed, the name Lubna Abdel-Aziz has become synonymous with romance, making her a logical choice for this year's festival, where she was both honoured for her romantic roles, and was a member of the international jury.

Abdel-Aziz is passionate about film, and throughout our conversation she is extremely animated and enthusiastic. It was clear that this was not just talk. She really cares about these issues.

photo: Khaled El-Fiqi

Were there any serious arguments between the jury?

We had to redefine certain categories. Watching a film is very subjective. Everyone has a point of view. These are films from different cultures. Like South Korea, for instance. What do we know about its culture, or what makes a good South Korean film?

So do good films have to transcend that kind of criteria?

Film is an international language. Like music it should be understood by everyone. Dialogue is of little importance. I should feel what the director is trying to say. But I am a film buff. So I pay special attention. Some people walk away if they don't understand.

Many Cairenes consider the festival a venue for obscure films. If they're going to watch anything non-Egyptian, it's either going to be American or Indian.

American films are not the criteria. They are the most technically sophisticated, like everything American, and they still know how to tell a story that touches the heart and instincts.

But they were at their peak after World War II, then the rush to introduce every new technology into film has definitely made them lose something. Now, however, they're slowly heading back to what might have been their golden age. They're doing that with small, independent productions... small ideas, but very big films.

What does this mean?

Look at The Blair Witch Project. I'm not saying it was a great film. It was terrible, but look at what it did. It cost $30,000 and made $150 million.

She pauses, and in the background, somewhere else in her elegant Zamalek apartment, music from the film Titanic can be heard.

"A little story well told is much better," she says. "I think Titanic was, in spite of how big it was, a simple idea, just a love story. People knew the boat was going to sink, but they came for the love story. The common denominator is the heart.

She argues that the return to these simple films about love began in Europe, but now the US, which in recent decades has been obsessed only with action, violence and special effects, is catching on. But can Egyptian films compete in this kind of marketplace?

"I don't see why not. But they have to speak their language. We lack the funds. We lack the matriarch. From my observation, I feel that our cinema has suffered from a few industrialists trying to make quick, easy money.

What kind of matriarch do we need?

Well, it's not the role of the state to be the mother and father. If we have a handful of dedicated cineastes and money, we could do it. We have the talent, the ideas, and certainly don't lack emotion.

We should be leading. We were 4th in the world in the 50s and 60s. Now Iran, Algeria, Lebanon and Turkey have caught up with us, and are even ahead of us internationally. Because they have courageous ideas, and dedication to their art.

But what's changed here in Egypt? Why can't we make films like in the 50s and 60s?

We're not going to make the same films. Not everyone feels the dedication of back then. We have a lot of talent but not a lot of direction. The language of drug dealers and belly dancers has to cease if we want to rise above the fray, if we want to focus on the art of cinema, which also happens to be a very profitable industry.

Maybe it's because we have so many other problems that we're trying to deal with these days: illiteracy, poverty, traffic and everything else...

We've always had problems. That's no excuse. Plus, adversity can bring out the best in us. The problem is that producers just want to keep the budget down. But making movies is a complex equation, and it's easy to make money in cinema if you do it right. In Italy it was once the number one source of income. We have a huge market for Arabs. Why don't we take advantage of that? Even in the States the studio system is not like it was before. Now there are independents, investors. I'm optimistic and full of hope because in many ways Egyptian cinema, which has had such an illustrious history, is in its infancy again. It's taking it's first steps.

Nevertheless, we only seem to have two types of films. Those destined for festivals, and classified as artistic, and those destined for the masses, and usually considered low-brow.

A good film has to be a box office as well as a critical favorite. Any art that doesn't reach its audience is dead. Why do we hear Mozart today? There's no point in making a film just to pat ourselves on the back. Staying power is the test of a good film.

The reason Hollywood is so great is because they're constantly trying to do both. Be artistic, and popular, at the same time.

Has she heard the growing talk over the past few weeks about making an Arab film for a Western audience?

I salute all of the songs in support of the Palestinian struggle, all the programmes, and everything else, but what good is it all if it's not going to the right people, to the right ears. It's aim should be to arouse the world. If you want to make a film about 50 years of struggle for Palestine, you have to make it so good that Clinton wants to see it, that Chirac sees it, and the South Koreans see it.

What are your expectations for the future of the festival?

I hope our film festival remains a category A festival. I hope they start working on next year's festival the minute this one ends. After the Oscars, they don't take a day off, or a month off, to rest. They start working on next year's show the very next day. And that's just a four-hour programme, not a whole festival.

Interview by Tarek Atia

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