Youssef Chahine – Egypt – 1978

‘Alexandria, Why?’ tells the story of Yehia, a precocious adolescent whose dreams and colorful attempts to become an actor unfold against the vivid backdrop of Alexandria during World War II. Yehia dreams of going to Hollywood one day and become a famous actor or director. Why, he asks himself, did he have the rotten luck to be born in Alexandria? Hence the title of ‘Alexandria…Why?’, a film that marked a radical, newly introspective turn in Youssef Chahine’s active career.

With a rich cast and a wealth of dramatic subplots – at turns hilarious and touching – about wartime life, Chahine’s film also delivers a potently subversive and impassioned anti-war message. The autobiographical nature and nostalgic flavor of ‘Alexandria, Why?’make it one of Chahine’s most accessible works,  charming and entertaining!

With: Naglaa Fathy , Farid Shawki , Layla Fawzi, Ahmed Zaki
Duration: 125 minutes
Language: Arabic (English subtitles)