This is a 27" x 39" Egyptian poster designed by Moaty for the 1981
Henry Barakat film Valley of Memories AKA wadi
al-zekriat based on a story by Michel Sawaya, screenplay by Rafiq
al-Saban and starring Shadia as Soad. Plot summary: Rafat [Mahmoud
Kabil] married Soad despite strong family opposition and the two of
them went to Syria where Soad's aunt was living. Rafat died after a
critical illness and Soad worked to finance the education of her
daughter Sahar [Hayat Kandeel]. This reinforced the bond of love
between them. Sahar fell in love with their neighbor Walid [Mahmoud
Abdel Aziz] and they made plans to marry. Soad became ill but hid it
from her daughter. Sahar went to Cairo to live with her rich aunt
Dowlat [Leila Fawzi]. A physician decided Soad needed surgery. When
Dowlat heard about this she asked Sahar to marry a wealthy boy named
Adham to get the money to pay for Soad's operation. After objecting
strenuously, Sahar finally agreed for her mother's sake and told Walid
about her situation. Soad became upset when she heard what was
happening and flew to Egypt, where she had a confrontation with
Dowlat; then Dowlat regretted interfering and gave the money to Soad.
Sahar went back to Walid in Syria. Happy ending!
Cast and crew: Henry Barakat, Shadia, Mahmoud Abdel Aziz, Leila
Fawzi, Imad Hamdi, Mahmoud Kabil, Hayat Kandeel, Fekry Abaza, Qadria
Qadri, Hani Al-Rumani, Zafira Qatan, Mahmoud Kamel, Anwar Madkour,
Michel Sawaya, Rafiq al-Saban, Abdel Moneim Bahnassy
Pictured is a 27" x 39" original Egyptian stone litho one-sheet
designed by Wahib Fahmy to promote the 1946 Hassan El-Seify 124-minute
black-and-white film Neighborhood Girl [bint el-hetta],
sometimes also translated as The Girl Next Door, starring
Zahrat El-Ola, based on story, screenplay and dialogue by Mahmoud
Ismail with cinematography by Mostafa Hassan. This intricate film
about life in a Cairo neighborhood is filmed entirely on a studio
sound stage and its story, dialogue and screenplay are all the
imaginative work of Mahmoud Ismail, who also plays the part of the
scheming Zaki al-Fayoumi. The sound stage does not do a good job of
showing the loud and chaotic character of a lower class Cairo
neighborhood, but that is not its purpose. Ismail wants to present a
psychological tapestry showing interaction and conflict among people
in difficult circumstances trying to satisfy social and financial
needs in various legitimate and illegitimate ways. This early example
of Egyptian social realism also features two classic performances by
the great dancer Samia Gamal in her role as Zaki al-Fayoumi's
collaborator.
Plot summary: Ekhlas [Zahrat El-Ola] is a university student and her
brother Salim [Ahmed Ramzi] is unemployed. Her mother [Zouzou Nabil]
is a domineering wife and her father [Ahmed Al Gaziri] is a man with a
weak personality who sells animal feed. Omar [Shukry Sarhan] owns a
dairy shop, but has stopped working to help his blind mother [Aziza
Helmy] care for his sisters. Zaki al-Fayoumi [Mahmoud Ismail] is a
tyrant who runs a criminal gang. His trusted assistant is Hambaka
[Tewfik El Dekn]; the beautiful and charming dancer Hosnia [Samia
Gamal] is another of his collaborators. Ekhlas loves Omar, who
persuades her to marry him, but Zaki Al-Fayoumi also loves her and
wants to marry her somehow. To this end he exploits her mother's
greed and her unemployed brother Selim's financial condition. He
employs Selim at a big salary and arranges a marriage between him and
Hosnia in exchange for the right to marry Selim's sister. Ekhlas goes
along with the wishes of her mother and brother and agrees to an
engagement with Zaki in return for being allowed to complete her
studies at the university, but this does not settle the question of
who will marry Ekhlas. Hambaka hires Ganzir [Hassan Hosni] and
Farkasha [Ahmed Abaza] to kill Omar to get him away from Ekhlas, but
they only injure him. Then they tell Ekhlas to break off her
engagement to Zaki and agree to marry Omar after he is cured and
leaves the hospital. On other side, to neutralize Omar as his rival
Zaki orders Selim to plant a package of hashish in a cupboard
belonging to Omar, who is then arrested and put in prison. Selim has
an awakening of conscience and feels he committed a great sin in
submitting to Zaki. Ekhlas feels her brother Selim has had a hand in
the planting of the hashish and tells this to her attorney [Anwar
Madkour]. The attorney hires special investigator Labib [George
Sidhum] to follow Selim. When Zaki senses that Selim is no longer
loyal to him, he asks Hosnia to poison his drink while they are in a
bar, but in a dramatic intervention the investigator Labib sitting
nearby jumps up and warns Selim not to drink it. In a ruse, Ekhlas
claims she loves Zaki and wants to marry him. Omar escapes from
prison seeking to prove his innocence. Hambaka and Zaki go to the
police and confess everything, while Selim confesses to planting the
hashish. They all gather at Zaki's home where the police rescue
Ekhlas. A police officer [Mokhtar Al Sayed] shoots and kills Zaki,
Hosnia is killed by her former lover, Ekhlas's mother goes crazy and
Omar's innocence is proven although he is given a six-month suspended
sentence for breaking out of prison.
Cast and crew: Samia Gamal, Shukry Sarhan, Ahmed Ramzy, Mahmoud Ismail, Mostafa Hassan, Zahrat El-Ola, Hassan El-Seify, Zouzou Nabil, Aziza Helmy, Mahmoud Farag, Anwar Madkour, Abdel Mohsen Seleem, Ahmed Abaza, Ahmed Al Gaziri, Hassan Hosni, George Sidhum, Mokhtar El Sayed
