In the film Jamila the Algerian, tells the story of Djamila Bouhired a young lady from the nothern African country, who was in 1957 accused of terrorism and sentenced to death by the French. She was however acquited in 1962 following strong media campaigns against her incaceration.
In his film, Chahine portrays Jamila as a heroine especially from how she does not relent from her Arabic nationalism even when subjected to torture and other forms of inhumane treatment by her captors. In a way, Chahine is trying to illustrate that the Arab nationalist project detailed by Malek Khouri had stronger roots founded in the struggle by all people irrespective of their gender.
In the 1963 release, the Victorious Saladin, Chahine tells the story of El Naser Salah el Dine. Chahine presents Saladin as a committed and strong leader and in way ends up revealing his stand regarding the continuation of the religious wars of the time.
He (Chahine) fronts the Arab nationalist perspective by illustrating that Even though Saladin’s Army was taken down by a combined army of Christian forces, he still ends up protecting the Holy land he was out to defend. Chahine shows how committed the Arab/Muslim army is when it comes to other people trying to impose their doctrines on them. This is especially shown in how members of his army under his leadership would rather die than watch Jerusalem being taken.
In The Sparrow (1973) Chahine takes a political standpoint by claiming that corruption in the Egyptian society is to blame for the country’s defeat in the 1967 war that happened in six days. It illustrates how the divided interest among citizens and unfounded loyalties could lead to the downfall of Arab nations. Chahine does not shy to illustrate his disappointment with the way the country how far down the country fell and he explains, though subtly, how traditional Arabic cultures had a lot to teach to succeeding generations.
The land released in 1968 shows how peasant farmers in the 1930s went out in full force to protect their parcels of land. The film was a major hit mainly because the farmers were revolting from one of their own (a selfish pasha) and not necessarily from outside interference. The film served to illustrate the lengths that the Arabic political struggle has come.
It also was received as a call for Arabs all over the world to stand up against the growing Israeli territory in the early 1960s. This release served to rebuke the vices of corruption and self-centered idealism especially by leaders. This is because while all these happen, it is the citizens who ended up the victims (Khouri 23-36).
Chaos, Chahine’s last film released in 2007 tells the story of a prosecutor who is intent on taking down a corrupt police head. The film is very full of political intonations and Chahine goes ahead to show how the Arab world is becoming socially and economically unstable because public figures are willing to look the other way and later traditionally-unaccepted vices pass.
The story unfolds to show how even the most junior of government employees can play his/her small role to ensure that Egypt (A representative of the Arab world) does not go the way of the dog. The film is set in Modern Egypt but still presents the Arab nationalist project as described by Khouri in good light.
Works Cited
Khouri, Malek. The Arab National Project in Youssef Cahine’s Cinema. Cairo: The American University in Cairo Press, 2010. Print.