Woman with a bad reputation is one of the ‘licentious’ ‘70s films made by prolific director Henry Barakat, known for his melodramas Call of the Curlew, The Open Door and the comedy musical Genie Lady. The main character in Woman with a bad reputation, Hanaa (played by the diva of the ‘70s, Shams al-Barudi), is primarily used by men who see her only as an object of lust. In this sense, the film could be considered a criticism of male behavior in general. Yet, the film has often been denounced as a mere propagation of “sexual immorality”, foregoing the implied meanings and criticism on gender relations in the so-called ‘free’ seventies. At the end of the film, one leaves with the question who exactly has a bad reputation…? Shams al-Barudi has acted in many ‘daring’ films, with some of the best directors of Egyptian cinema, including Henry Barakat and Salah Abu Saif.

Henry Barakat, Egypt, 1973

Language: Arabic (English Subtitles)
Duration: 103 minutes
With: Shams al-Barudi, Youssef Shaaban, Emad Hamdi, Mahmoud Yassin