Cairo Time

This is the final blog post about IFFBoston. It was a great event and I plan on going back again next year.

CAIRO TIME

Premise: Juliette (Patricia Clarkson), the wife of a UN officer, travels to Cairo for a vacation. She meets Tareq (Alexander Siddig), her husband's former right-hand man. They share a delightful time in Cairo until her husband returns from Gaza.

Reaction: I think, besides Drones, this was the best film at the festival, hands down. The cinematography and the score/soundtrack was beautfiul. The film was completely shot in Eygpt (a feat never before done. There were scenes at the pryamids and the White Desert (an 8 hour drive out of Cairo). Truly, fantastic. The storyline reminded me a lot of an irish film that showed at Sundance a few years back; Once. That was a sort of love story where both main characters went their separate ways at the end. Here, Juliet went with her husband, Mark, and Tareq went his own way.

I have to say I was really rooting for Juliet and Tareq. I mean, they enjoyed each other's company and even shared a kiss. But the thing I've leaned about independent films is that they rarely have the traditional happy ending. I will definitely buy this film on DVD.

Afterwards, there was a Q&A and with the director, Ruba Nadda. She was delightful and answered everyone's questions, even the ones that were critical of her casting choices. I didn't think that was necessary and I guess most people wouldn't know there was anything wrong. But this film was really the perfect way to end my festival experience.

Rating: * * * * *

We'll be back next week with writing-related posts. Cheers.