|
|
register now
for site updates
(type your email here)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
A dream come true?
Director Mohamed Amin and actor Fathy Abdel-Wahab wowed audiences this year with their frank portrayal of sexual frustration in Film Thaqafi (A Cultural Film). On Friday night, they sat with the big boys of Egyptian cinema in anticipation of the announcement of the best films and actors of the year 2000. As they waited, belly dancer Fifi Abdu came over and wowed them with her moves.
Dispatch
Filed by Karim Darwich
March 25, 2001
Overall, the atmosphere at the Egyptian Society for Cinematic Arts' Egyptian Oscar awards was more like a wedding than an awards ceremony. The hotel ballroom was set up in the same way, and the program came complete with open buffet, singer after singer, and the interminable wait to get to the main event. The highlight may have been Fifi Abdu's spirited (to say the least) performance, but by one in the morning, none of the prizes had even been given out.
The stars were there, spread out around the tables. The front table -- designated for the award winners -- had the biggest percentage, including Leila Fawzy and Shouikar, who were being honored for lifetime achievements, as well as a bevy of the hottest young stars on the scene today... actors Fathy Abdel-Wahab, Mohamed Nagati, Ahmed Eid, Ahmed El-Fishawi , Ahmed Zaher, and Bassem Samra, as well as director Mohamed Amin.
At other tables sat veterans Samiha Ayoub, Nabila Ebeid, Kamal El-Shinnawi, and Mervat Amin.
When I catch sight of actor Khaled Zaki, I can't help but think of that scene in Rasha Garea, when the aspiring actor played by Ashraf Abdel-Baki merely dreams of being moderately famous, like Khaled Zaki, as opposed to being phenomenally famous, like Ahmed Zaki.
The ceremony is being taped by ART, which is heavily plugging its new Al-Awael pay-TV bouquet. The event is not live, so the announcer is casually sitting at the tables with all the younger and older stars, sending the microphone around for everyone to put in their two cents worth. Meanwhile, the paparazzi are flitting about, snapping shots. As veteran actor Mahmoud Yassin shows up, an aspiring young actress sitting next to me starts having severe trouble with her contact lenses --- and in the blink of an eye, her blue eyes turn a very dark brown.
Is Arab movie society glamorous, I wonder? I remember an argument I had with a colleague once -- he insisting it wasn't, and could never be, and me saying it might not be, but could... But here, at what you'd think would be one of the year's most glamorous events, I have to admit I agree with him -- it's probably a hopeless case.
I see a mink, with the head still attached, draped on a chair. I see a woman with green hair wearing a sparkling silver dress. There are some exceptions of course, but they're few and far between. I feel like I'm at a school party as I spy people hiding bottles under the table and stealing sips every once in a while.
Later, I find out it took four months of deliberations to come up with the winners. I thought the odds were on Film Thaqafi, which was clearly the year's best film. The question was: how many awards would it win?
Well, it only ended up winning a "Best Poster" prize, and garnering certificates of merit for its three stars, Fathy Abdel-Wahabn, and Ahmeds Eid and Rizq, as well as producer Sami El-Adl.
Maalish, maybe next year. A partial list of the rest of the awards follows:
 best actor: Nour El-Sherif
best actress: Lucy
best supporting actress: Magda Zaky
best supporting actor: Abdel-Rahman Abu Zahra
best director: Osama Fawzy
best production: Korsi fil Kilob
best poster: Film Thaqafi
certificates of merit for the three young men from Film Thaqafi, and producer Sami El-Adl
Did you like this article? Send your comments to comments@cairolive.com
|
|
|
