Egyptian Cinema: Hollywood of the East
Egypt has culturally led the Middle East since ancient times. For instance, the kingdoms of the Pharaohs, the appearance of the prophets, and its strategic location made it an important point for linking between the East and the West. In the modern era, Egypt (also called the mother of the world) was the first Arab country that opened up to Western civilization, and many new jobs that did not previously exist appeared.
Egyptian cinema is the oldest cinema in the Middle East and Africa, and it has been called the Hollywood of the East. It is also the most widespread cinema in the Arab region due to the language similarity factor, and it has the greatest impact on the film industry in the regional environment since the early twentieth century. Egypt's relationship with cinema began at the same time when it started in the other parts of the world, as it is known that the first commercial cinema show in the world was in December 1895 in Paris. It was a silent film by the Lumière brothers. A few days later, the first cinematic show in Egypt was presented in Alexandria in January 1896, followed by the first cinematic show in Cairo on January 28, 1896, then the third cinematic show in Port Said in 1898. The beginning of the Egyptian film production was showing views of Consul Square in Alexandria and Mohammed Ali Square in mid-1907 by the first cameraman in Egypt, Promeo, who worked for the Lumber Cinema.
Indeed, the beginnings were distinguished for the Egyptian cinema where films appeared showing various themes that simulate the diversity found in Western cinema. Wonderfully, women appeared in a leading role in this cinema, as she was in one of the two most famous Egyptian films (Leila), acted by Aziza Amin. Besides, the first Egyptian film was shown outside the country (Wadad), starring the artist of the East, Umm Kulthum. This film was produced by Misr Studio, which was established in 1935, which made a strong transition in the Egyptian cinema. We can say that the Egyptian cinema continued to learn, i.e., the stage of its beginnings, until mid of the last century, affected by the political conditions in the world, such as wars, revolutions of liberation, and cultural transition.
Later, Hollywood of the East surprisingly developed, and the number of movies produced increased, and the films became colorful to the public. Moreover, the Egyptian government adopted film production after it was solely done by the private sector. On top, a great generation of multi-talented Egyptian actors appeared, such as Su'ad Hosni - the actress and show dancer, Mahmoud Yassin, Thu Al-Faqar Family, Faten Hamama, Omar Al-Sharif - the international actor who participated in the movie "Lawrence of Arabia," the famous artist Abdel-Halim Hafez, and others. Fascinatingly, in all their films, they touched various social, political, and economic issues and carried strong messages towards building the new Egyptian society.
Indeed, the Egyptian cinema responded to the updates in the world of the cinema industry. For instance, production, directing, and story writing have developed, and historical and social films were shown. Arabs got very attached to Egyptian cinema and its actors, and cinema began to appear in other Arab countries, following the same path. Now, in light of the rapid development in the film industry, cinema, social media, and the spread of the Internet, Egyptian cinema is still the pioneer among the Arab world and has creative productions in all cinematic genres, e.g., comedian, romantic, etc. One of the most famous and most watched films in the history of Egyptian cinema is a movie called “Determination,” directed by Kamal Salim, which was shown in 1939, starring Fatima Rushdi and Hussein Sidqi. It tells a love story between them and how difficult economic conditions affect the continuation of their marriage relationship. It also presents the negative impact of betrayal and the importance of loyalty between friends. Hence, it was chosen at the top of the 100 best Egyptian movies.
One of the most important and outstanding Egyptian cinema actors is the international actor Omar Al-Sharif (pictured), who began his cinematic career in Egypt and transferred into internationality in 1962 in Hollywood with the epic historical drama film Lawrence of Arabia, which earned him a nomination for the Academy Award and the Golden Globe Award. Then, he starred alongside Barbra Streisand in "Funny Girl 1968" and Julie Christie in "Doctor Zhivago 1965". It is not surprising that he is considered a legend for his prowess in acting. Furthermore, the legend Omar starred in films, such as "Struggle in the Valley" and "A Man in Our House". Additionally, he fluently speaks English, Arabic, French, Greek, and Italian. Sadly, he died on July 10, 2015. One of his most significant works in Arabic is the movie "Hassan and Marcus", which presents the importance of religious tolerance in Egypt, which is inhabited by Muslims and Copts.
