Films follow each other at the “Berlin” festival, and it does not allow any other space, although the voice of politics used to rise from time to time dominating the scene, but in the end we search for cinema and also find it.
We all, journalists and critics, keep an eye on the minute and second of the film screenings. The Egyptian delegation received an official invitation from the active ambassador who loves culture, Mr. Khaled Jalal, to meet, and with us was Hussein Fahmy, who is attending in his capacity as president of the Cairo Festival, and with him the work team to choose films from those that were enjoyed. It has “Berlin” suitable for display in “Cairo”.
This is what many festivals do, such as the “Red Sea”, where there are a number of festival programmers, and also “Malmö”, the films are watched by director Muhammad al-Qiblawi, president and founder of the festival and others.
At the Egyptian Embassy’s dinner party, Hussein Fahmy set out to narrate many memories, including his story with Farid al-Atrash. He shared with him his latest film, “Negham in My Life”, which was shown in the year 75, a few months after Farid’s departure. Hussein said: “At first, I was not enthusiastic about the role despite my love for Farid, because in the end it is a film by the great musician, but he called me and asked me to co-star with him, saying: (This is my last film, Hussein), and the strange thing is that the script was made in this way, and the director of the film Henry Barakat, one of the most important directors in our Arab world, in anticipation of what might happen, was putting details in the script that included the alternative plan in the event of Farid’s departure, and we all received the two copies, with Farid’s knowledge, which was not hidden from anyone, that this movie is his last view of the film. world, and he accepted the matter with simplicity, conviction, and contentment, and in his will for us, he requested that his body be shared in Egypt, and that he be buried next to his sister, Asmahan.
Barakat asked Farid to go to the airport and film him waving his hands to say goodbye, then he presented a shot of a plane flying in the sky, and those shots were not in the first scenario (if Farid survived) or in the second that would have been implemented after his departure, I learned later Barakat developed a third scenario that no one thought of, which is that Farid completes filming the film, but leaves before its public screening, which is what actually happened, so that these shots are really capable of breaking the imaginary barrier between the screen and the audience, and people were crying afterwards as they left the theater. ».
A number of artists presented their work, realizing that this is their last breath on the screen. Naguib Al-Rihani in “Ghazal Al-Banat” asked Laila Murad to meet with her, when they happened to be found in the elevator of the building, telling her: “We want to act in a movie together before I die.” Indeed, Anwar Wagdi got excited and wrote the script, and Anwar re-edited the last montage, because Naguib did not complete all the footage, and we watched him and wept with him as he repeated, his eyes crying, “My eyes are luxurious” with Laila Murad in the most wonderful “duet” that we loved because of his excessive sincerity, because it combines a smile and a tear.
Ahmed Zaki in the movie “Halim”, the last artwork he starred in, and was also shown after his departure. Director Sharif Arafa had developed an alternative scenario, and Ahmed Zaki was aware of that, and for this reason he agreed to his son Haitham’s participation in acting for the first time, although he was initially opposed to His professionalism in this profession, director Sherif Arafa told me that sometimes, for fear of Ahmed’s fatigue, he would have to change some scenes, and in a shot we should have seen Ahmed Zaki running out of breath in the hospital to catch up with his beloved, and his health condition did not allow that, and Ahmed could not He only walked quickly, and Sharif accepted this much, but Ahmed Zaki asked for a replay to run in the hospital corridors as if he did not suffer from the severity of the disease. Rather, the last scenes he filmed had completely lost his ability to see, and in the end, to complete the film, Arafa used the alternative scenario, after leaving, the stars The greats do not leave the field until the last minute, and so does Al-Rihani, Farid and Zaki.
They deceived you and said at the Berlin Festival that no voice is louder than politics. The truth is that this session, which bears number “73”, proved that Farid al-Atrash’s voice is still louder than everyone else.