Wednesday, November 09, 2005

film week

the department of english language & literature presents

film week
featuring films from the gulf

12-16 november 2005, 7 pm
abdullah al-otaibi bldg., basement
kaifan campus, kuwait university
free admission


12 november 2005
dreams without sleep
directed by walid al-awadi
kuwait, 2003, 90 minutes
english
this documentary traces the lives of five new yorkers of diverse backgrounds immediately after the horrific events of 9/11. from his unique perspective as an arab filmmaker, al-awadi reveals how, despite the odds, dreams continue to flourish in the city that never sleeps. this film captures a sense of people's immense fragility and inexorable resilience.
13 november 2005
leila

directed by dariush mehrjui
starring leila hatami, aUmosaffa
iran, 1996, 129 minutes
farsi with english subtitles
recently married, leila and reza are deeply in love. Their happiness is cut short when they learn leila is unable to concieve. while reza insists their love for each other is all that matters, his mother believes otherwise. She convinces her daughter-in-law that reza needs to take a second wife in order to carryon the family line. Mehrjui eloquently explores the devastating effects of tradition and the perversity of love in this moving story.
14 november 2005
the english sheik and the yemeni gentleman

directed by bader ben hirsi
yemen, 2000, 76 minutes
arabic with english subtitles
this autobiographical documentary chronicles the return to yemen of british-born director, bader ben hirsi. the son of exiled yemeni parents living in london, ben hirsi journeys to yemen to explore his lost country, its people, and their way of life. together with the eccentric English expatriate, tim makintosh-smith, who has spent the last sixteen years in sana' a, ben hirsi rediscovers his homeland. this film poetically unravels the profound significance of place and the power of unlikely friendships.
15 november 2005
marooned in iraq

directed &written by bahman ghobadi
starring shahab ebrahimi, alah-morad rashtian,
faegh mohammadi
iran, 2002, 97 minutes
kurdish with english subtitles
mirza, an iranian-kurdish musician, learns that his wife, hanareh, who left him for his best friend many years ago and ran away to sing in iraq, needs his help. with his sons, audeh and barat, mirza makes his way across the border into iraq to find her. what ensues is a madcap adventure that reveals the determined struggle of the kurdish people in the face of annihilation. ghobadi exuberantly presents music, love, education, children, and humor as an antidote to violence and war in this award-winning film.
16 november 2005
selection of shorts from the u.a.e.

signs of the dead
directed by waleed al-shehhi
starring bilal abdullah, nawaf al-janahi
2005, 26 minutes 30 seconds
silent
al-fustan
directed by abdullah hassan ahmed
starring saeed obaid, nora albady
2005, 28 minutes 38 seconds
arabic with english subtitles
al-ghaith
directed &written by fadel saeed al-muhairi
starring eisa al-eisa
2004, 38 minutes
arabic With english subtitles
silk strings
directed &written by amina ataya
starring adel ibrahim, amani, hassan yousif
2005, 35 minutes 15 seconds
arabic With english subtitles

8 comments:

Jewaira said...

That's great to know; thanks for sharing the info.

Shurouq said...

Post a detailed program, like the one you e-mailed me

(Leila is a less dramatic version of When Mariam Spoke. I have it on DVD in case you miss it)

Shurouq said...

Tata, I wanted to say hi to Fouladkar too, but I was busy trying to find a tissue to wipe my tears away

"Leila" is an older film with almost the same story..
So I'm kinda wondering if "the real story" behind them both took place in Iran

Trivia: The name Fouladkar is persian

And thank you, Hanan :)

ValenciaLover said...

NICE. Timings?

9oot said...

Thanks for the info. And I suggest that it is advertised in the newspapers also for those who are interested but with no source of information.

Hanan said...

jewaira. ur welcome. hope to see you there :)

shurouq. done.

tata. the organizers behind this are among the best in our department so i'm hopeful.

when meriam spoke is amazing, no? hope these films will be as good.

valencia. 7 pm as the post says. duh ;)

9oot. i'm not one of the organizers and i don't think we even have the budget for a newspaper add (KU's cheap when it comes to promoting culture)

Asma said...

Thanks for the information. Nice to know that the English Department is organizing such events. I forwarded the msg to my friends ;). Don't forget to tell us what happened (in case we missed it)

Jazz Central said...

I'm planning to go today to the showing of Dreams without sleep :) I heard its really good.