5 Must-See Classic Egyptian Films

1) El Kit Kat “الكيت الكات” – Filmed in 1991 by director Daoud Abdel Sayed, and starring Mahmoud Abd El-Aziz, who plays the blind man, El Kit Kat tells a story woven with drama, misery and love affairs. Named after a neighborhood in Giza, not the chocolate bar, the film chronicles the life of Sheikh Hosny, who after the death of his wife, lives with his elderly mother and son Youssef. His aggravated son hopes to leave Egypt for Europe to find work. Refusing to admit his blindness is a handicap, Hosny still dreams of riding a motorcycle and continuing his life like a sighted person. Spending most of his time smoking with the Kit Kat locals, Hosny knows all the gossip of the neighborhood.

2) Adrift on the Nile (Thartharah Fawq al-Nil) “ثرثرة فوق النيل” – Made in 1971 by Hussein Kamal, this film is based on a novel by Nobel Laureate Naguib Mahfouz. The films’ primary theme being political corruption and decadence, it is set on a Nile canal, where government employees habitually meet to smoke hashish, drink and gossip. Quite disparaging of Egypt’s socialist bureaucracy during the reign of President Gamal Abdul Nasser, it opened conversation among Egypt’s masses and brought political exploitations to the forefront. The general motif being rather political, this film is still banned in many Arab countries.

3) The Mummy (Al-Mummia) “المومياء” or The Night of Counting the Years – Made by Shadi Abdel Salam in 1969, this film narrates the story of an underprivileged family whose livelihood is the prohibited trade of pharaonic treasures. Abdel Salam paid particular attention to costumes and sets, doing scrupulous research to assure accuracy, lending the films’ aesthetics a stunningly authentic tone.

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5 Must-See Classic Egyptian Films