Iskanderija, Kaman oue Kaman (1990)
H: I couldn't remember what happened to Alexander the Great's body, but it's even more interesting than I remember it. I bring that up because I found the scene where Yehia discovers Alexander's tomb was really affecting. He's in the glass sarcophagus and all of a sudden a huge drill bursts through the ceiling and into the coffin, spilling his blood. Needless to say, this film is loaded with symbols.
K: It's a fully loaded film like Alexander's body, and it continually sprayed its symbolic blood full of symbolism all over. I liked this part too, but I think this last movie from his trilogy of Alexandria films, was his most obvious. (Yes, I am keeping in mind Egyptian Story taking place in a human body.)
H: Overt, yes, but I don't know about obvious in all cases. You have to have knowledge in lots of places for this movie to be obvious: the history of cinema, the history of Egypt pre-Islam, the history of Egypt in the 20th century, Shakespeare, musicals, labor issues. One review claimed that the musical with Alexander was a spoof on Jesus Christ Superstar which seems pretty accurate, actually. One thing I find really interesting about Chahine is he never overtly deals with Islam.
K: This was what I was thinking about the film. It feels like a catch-22 for a non-American director. If you are from that culture, do you have to make films about it? What's your responsibility?
H: Exactly. We don't ask Tim Burton why he's not making films about being white and weird in America. He can make movies about things that don't exist, like Beetlejuice. We seem to hold foreign directors, particularly those outside Western Europe, to a higher, stranger standard where they can't just make art, they have to speak for their entire country and all of its issues, presumably because theirs is the one movie from that country that'll ever be viewed outside it. That's a lot of pressure.
Still, Chahine rises to that occasion by talking about democracy in Egypt and the problem of hero/king worship in his obsession with Alexander. He in a way turns this expectation on his head by making a movie as much about American movie culture and historical British theater as it is about Egypt. Really, this movie is about everything. So, now he's free to make a movie about nothing (art's ultimate aspiration). Too bad he's dead.
K: I think you liked this movie more than I did, which is fine, but I think if he were making films today, he would still be making them about himself. I would much rather have this director make movies about himself than Tim Burton, but at the same time, I think once that line is crossed, it's hard to take anything he makes after these films seriously.
H: We'll have to watch Destiny (1997) to find out. I don't think it's impossible to take a director seriously once he's made autobiographical films, plus you have to remember we've only seen movies from near the end of his life. We haven't seen the movies that made him great and lead up to (maybe justifying) these three culminating films. A lot of directors begin their careers with autobiographical films (Four Hundred Blows, etc) and the subject of film in films isn't exactly untouchable. In short, we need to watch his early films, none of which are at the library.
I like how confident and true to his vision he is in this movie. He's like a joyful Werner Herzog in his dedication to vision. Every shot is him hauling a boat up a mountain.
K: True, it's not impossible. But how accessible are his autobiographical movies? We've noted that they are steep in symbolism, and for someone like me, it's almost too much. Uh oh...did I just give away my ignorance? As for my ignorance, I am happy that's it's a good story on it's own. I can enjoy it without ever having to learn about the struggles of Egyptians...ever.
p.s. Wernor Herzog is plenty joyful.
November 29, 2009
Alexandria, Now and Forever (Iskanderija, kaman oue kaman)- "Beggars Can't Be Directors Who Can't Be Actors Who Are Choosy"
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