Egyptian Classic: Zawgat Ragoul Mohim (1987)

Studio Arabesquo x Cinema de Vlugt presenteren: Zawgat Ragoul Mohim

  Spoken language: Arabic
  Subtitles: English

In Zawgat Ragoul Mohim (Wife of an Important Man, 1987) Directed by Mohamed Khan and written by Raouf Tawfik, Mona (Mirvat Amin) reflects her husband Hesham‘s (Ahmed Zaki) transformation from low-ranking officer in a small village to colonel in the State Security Cairo branch. Her discovery of her husband’s corrupt spirit and narcissistic self, which divides the world into “I” and “other,” is shown on her face, from pure teenage affection to eye-opening surprise, to tiring steadiness, to despair and collapse. Zawgat Ragoul Mohim (Wife of an Important Man) is a take on the psychological and social effect of authority. It captures the clash between hungry fascism and optimistic romanticism through tracing the arc of a romantic relationship.