In The Heliopolis Flat

I went to see this movie tonight with a couple of friends and a guy who turned out to be his a director and big Mohamed Khan fan. He looks at Khan as if he is the Fellini of Egyptian cinema.

“Fi Shaqqet Masr El-Gedida” (In a Heliopolis Apartment).

Yehia (Khaled Abol Naga) seeking more independence, he leaves his parents’ house and rents an apartment of his own in the Heliopolis suburb of Cairo away from his parents' & close to his Banking & stocks investment work company, to discover that the spirit or ghost! of an ex-tenant Tahany is present in the apartment.

The story happen all over 3 days. When Nagwa (20something UpperEgypt music teacher who works in a school managed by nuns) comes to Cairo from Menya and despite her restricted upbringing and environment in which she lives, Nagwa (Ghada Adel) is extremely romantic and believes she will find the love of her life one day.

On the other hand is Yehia, unlike Nagwa, doesn’t believe in love, and prefers to focus on his flourishing career with a successful financial company, and his casual/sexual relationship with a recent divorcée named Dalia.

One day, while on a school trip to Cairo, Nagwa decides to visit her old teacher “Tahany” who was fired during her schooldays because she used to talk to her students about the meaning of love. When Nagwa reaches the teacher’s Helioplois Aprartment, she discovers that her beloved Mrs. Tahany isn’t there — and that the new resident of the Heliopolis flat is, of course, Yehia.

Fi Shaqqet Masr El-Gedida is supposed to be both mystical and romantic, revolving around the search for the secrets lying within this apartment.

Now I don't know whether or not my disinterest in this film has to do with me having reached my saturation level on Kaled Abol Naga’s shallow acting or it is the superficial script by Wessam Soliman. For me the film is nothing but an idiotic plot which I honestly didn't really care about. Mind you, I didn't hate the film by any means, in fact, I was thinking about recommending it even slightly, but in the end, a couple of minutes after I walked out of the cinema the film just sort of disappeared from my mind.

If you are at home having lunch and by coincidence “Fi Shaqqet Masr El-Gedida” is playing on TV, it might be worth it to watch! but this would mean you must be really bored :)