Sunday, June 25, 2006
The Yacoubian Building
I'm so impressed and proud of how this movie turned out to be.I found out that it's originally a book by Alaa Al Aswany.Not that i would've read it, I prefer to watch the movie version, kinda like the Da Vinci Code, every one said the book is much better, I guess I'll never know.
I took mom and went to watch the movie today, regardless of the fact that it was an adult only movie (lel Kebar fakat), the theatre was filled with teenagers, "hia di masr ya abla" mom said.
The Yacoubian Building is an actual appartment building in down town cairo, it was orginally built for high class poeple, built by a greek man who sold it's appts to pashas and secretaries and the likes.
The movie covers contemporary Egypt and how it turned out to be during the past 75 yrs, how it has become after the revulotion, and how the rich and the poor reside in the building with all their differences.
For the first time, an Egyptian movie talks openly about the corruption of the government, homosexuality and how some of the muslim brother hood brainwash poor ignorant people.
One example of the rich people is the son of one of the late pashas who couldn't lead a normal life even though he was educated in paris with an engineering degree, he instead turned out to be an alchoholic womaniser. It shows that he is living in denial and blames the country for all his misdemeanours.
An example of the low class residents was a girl who lives on the roof and supports her family after her father passed away, she changes jobs because she wouldn't accept sexual harrassment from her bosses but did at the end for 10 extra pounds.
One of the funny scenes was between this girl and her mother.The girls quits her job and the mom gets furious, so the girl says:Girl: Aslo bihases alaia, arfa yanni eh bihases ya mama?Mother: (quite)Girl: bas matkhafish men bokra el sobh hadawar ala shoghl taniMother: howa enti btetstani fi shoghl! toodi youm w temshi!Girl: ana ba'oulek el ragel fatah sostit el bantaloon!Mother: Kol wahed horr fi hodoumo ya habebti, adam enti hodomek alieki khalas!Another poor category was the bowab's son, who studied hard but didn't get accepted in the Police academy because of what his father does, so instead, he gets recruited by the ekhwan, gets caught and raped then wanted to take revenge kills and gets killed.
Another resident was the gay guy, who is a high profile editor n chief of a french newspaper. He gets his lay from the streets, ignornat people whom he convinces that having sex with men isn't haram (forbidden) only adultery is, coz men do not get pregnant! The thing that i didn't like was that the gay guy used a lot of french and they had no subtitles, come on yanni, not all egypt knows french for sure!
There are many others, and they're all residents of the infamous Yacoubian Building.I think I spoilt it for those who didn't watch the movie, but it's really worth watching!
---------------------------------
I decided to take mom for pizza, so we went to dominoz pizza.
While waiting, i saw the pizza guy spreading the dough, adding the ingredients and the cheese with his bare hands.
I thought i should just shut up, but i couldn't, i really tried.
So the coversation went like this:
Me: Enta modeer el mahal?
Guy: aiwa
Me: howa leh ento mesh betelbeso gloves?
Guy: shaifa hadreteil el bab da? da wara fi houd w maia w saboun, wel mowazafeee...
Me (interrutping): El ragel da (pointing at one of them who was spreading the dough) kan hena w badien telee bara w geh ala toul ebtada fil pizza, madakhalsh wara el bab wala shaf el maia wala el saboun
Guy: ya (the other guy's name) enta mesh ghasalt edak?
Other guy: La'a, ana makontish aref en ana habtedi shoghl lama giet men bara
Guy: rooh delwa'ti eghsel edak w ermi el agina di w eemel wahda tania.
Me: shoft ba'a, abl matetarya' alaia wet'ouli andena maia wa saboun shouf el awel
Guy: ya anesa ana mesh batarya' da kanoon el mahal..
Me: kanoon el mahal enoko mesh telbeso gloves?
Guy: la ya anesa, enti lama betrohi pizza hut betshofihom w homa byemelo el pizza? ehna bas eli benemel keda
Me: ana mesh batkalem ala keda bardo, roh ai saidalia w hat elbet gloves b ashara geneh, mesh kteer i think.
Guy: mesh ala el felous ya anesa bas..
Me (interrupting again): mashi ok, bas ana olt a'oulak, ashan mesh kol wahed bighsel edo zai ma enta fahem
I took my order and left.
Inspite of all that, and for the sole fact that i didn't actually see anyone doing my pizza; it was delicious!
Alluring spluttered at :
3:55 PM :
16 added their frame of reference
Contravene
-------------------------------------
