Arab World’s Greatest Filmmaker Youssef Chahine Dies at 82
Egyptian film director Youssef Chahine died in Cairo aged 82, on the 27th of July 2008, about four weeks after he went into a coma following a brain hemorrhage.
Youssef Gabriel Chahine was born on the 25th of January, 1926 in Alexandria into an Egyptian Christian family. Chahine attended the prestigious Victoria College where he received his high school diploma. After spending one year at Alexandria University, he moved to the United States to study acting and drama at the Pasadena Playhouse.
Returning to Egypt, he filmed Baba Amin movie (1950). One year later, his movie Nile Boy (1951) was invited to the Cannes Film Festival. Thus, Chahine entered the world of fame. His professional career included the direction of 37 feature-length films and 5 short films, several of which won prizes or were nominated for different Oscars. In 1997, and after 46 years of success, his work was acknowledged at the Cannes Film Festival with a lifetime achievement award on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the festival. Moreover, he was elevated to the rank of officer of the Legion of Honor by the French government in 2006. As for the actual French president Nicolas Sarkozi, he expressed his deep sad sorrow over the death of the great producer Chahine, describing him as " a fervent defender of freedom of expression".
As for his best movies, they are: Baba Amin (Papa Amin), Bab al-Hadid (Cairo Station or Cairo Main Station), Al-Ard (The Land), El Asfur (The Sparrow), Intilak (Forward We Go), Iskandariyah... lih? (Alexandria... Why?) , Hadduta Misriyah (An Egyptian Tale), Iskandariyah Kaman wa Kaman (Alexandria Again and Again) and Heya Fawda (This Is Chaos).
It is to be noted that Youssef Chahine movies introduced a whole generation of cinema lovers to distant countries and civilizations. In fact, his camera showed Egyptians the world’s different and difficult social problems. Moreover, Chahine was regarded as the biggest opposer to censorship, extremism and even to the Egyptian government. In this regard, and as he saw himself as part of the generation of liberals, said that he will struggle against the fundamentalist censorship imposed by the state or society until the last day of his career.
Chahine was hospitalized at Ach-Chourouq hospital in Cairo in a coma following an apparent cerebral haemorrhage, on Sunday, June 15, 2008. Chahine was flown to Paris on an emergency flight and admitted to the American Hospital in Neuilly-sur-Seine, west of Paris. Youssef Chahine died in his Cairo home on Sunday July 27, 2008.
