Certificate: 12A (moderate violence, threat, bloody images, sex references)
Running Time: 121 mins
UK Distributor: Picturehouse Entertainment
WHO’S IN IT?
Tawfeek Barhom, Fares Fares, Mohammad Bakri, Makram Khoury, Mehdi Dehbi, Moe Ayoub, Sherwan Haji, Abduljabbar Alsuhili, Ahmed Lassaoui, Jalal Altawil, Ramzi Choukair, Yunus Albayrak, Mouloud Ayad, Amr Mosad
WHO’S BEHIND THE CAMERA?
Tarik Saleh (director, writer), Kristina Åberg and Fredrik Zander (producers), Krister Linder (composer), Pierre Aïm (cinematographer), Theis Schmidt (editor)
WHAT’S IT ABOUT?
A university student (Barhom) finds himself caught in the middle of a power vacuum…
WHAT ARE MY THOUGHTS ON CAIRO CONSPIRACY?
Power corrupts, as the old saying goes, but in countries such as Iran, Libya and (in this case) Egypt, corruption simply is power. You’d be hard-pressed to find an institution within any of these countries that isn’t in some way shady, and with figureheads who will do and say just about anything to cling onto whatever power they have – which is part of what makes Cairo Conspiracy, from filmmaker Tarik Saleh, rather interesting. Not only is it dealing with the crookedness of local politics, but it also shows clear as day how there is the distinct possibility of something being rotten within what is widely regarded as the centre of the peaceful Islam religion, the Al-Azhar University in Egypt’s capital city.
If the most respected Islamic institute in the world is susceptible to a few rotten apples, then what hope do the poor souls caught in the middle of it all have left? That is what Saleh’s film sets out to explore, and it does so with a strong sense of intrigue that overcomes many of its conventional mechanics.
The film opens with Adam (Tawfeek Barhom), a fisherman’s son in a small coastal village, receiving a letter confirming his place at Al-Azhar, where he joins thousands of other new students in their studies to live and breathe the Quran, and then hopefully graduate as Sheikhs. Things become complicated, however, when the Grand Imam – an official title considered to be the highest authority within Sunni Islam – suddenly dies, and the government becomes keen to implement their President’s preferred candidate over the conservative Sheikh Durani (Ramzi Choukair) and the more popular choice, blind Sheikh Negm (Makram Khoury). They task world-weary government official Ibrahim (Fares Fares), who already has a well-placed mole within the university, with the mission, but when the mole is killed by a group of extremist Islamic students who may or may not be under the tutelage of Durani, young Adam is suddenly thrust under Ibrahim’s wing as a reluctant patsy, leading him to witness first-hand the sleazy and immoral measures that those in power, either in politics or within his own place of study, will resort to in order to get what they want.
As a straightforward political thriller, Cairo Conspiracy fits the bill well. Saleh’s filmmaking is tightly wound, to where nearly every major reveal gets an earned reaction, because the writing is neatly on point for those moments to feel genuinely tense and unexpected. Much of the plot won’t come as a major surprise to anyone who’s seen a standard political thriller before – from hidden secrets kept by at least one respectable main figure, to double-crosses that end up backfiring in some way – but Saleh paces his film decently enough for things to hold your attention, despite some of the familiarity.
The script – which was awarded the Best Screenplay prize at last year’s Cannes Film Festival – also taps into the unique setting rather well, with most of the action unfolding within the walls of this university, while the central Islamic themes gently juxtapose the undeniably totalitarian plotting going on in the background. There are some intense scenes that can be described simply enough, such as a character placing incriminating files amongst their roommate’s belongings, but the fact that it’s also taking place during a Quran recital contest, with harmonisation of passages dominating the already on-edge soundtrack, adds an extra layer of suspense because you’re also somewhat invested in how that is going to turn out.
It’s certainly an intriguing script, one that’s also well-made with the streets of Morocco and the Süleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul filling in for Cairo and Al-Azhar respectively (due to Saleh being unable to shoot in Egypt following his expulsion from the country after previous making critical films like The Nile Hilton Incident), but Cairo Conspiracy does fall prey to conventionality more than once.
Some of the story beats and character revelations are easy to spot from afar, and it’s one of those films where nearly every other major player is infinitely more interesting and fleshed out than the young protagonist, in this case Tawfeek Barhom who does fine but his Adam is mostly just a bland audience avatar with few defining traits as an actual person. It’s understandable why such a character would be placed at the centre of this movie, but the fact that he’s nowhere near as compelling or even as charismatic as others like Fares Fares’ much more three-dimensional Ibrahim makes it hard to get too invested in his overall arc.
When it works, though, the movie is suspenseful enough to overcome most of that. It’s a handsomely made and almost just as solidly written thriller that is good to watch during an evening in front of the TV (which isn’t to negate its theatrical appeal, as there is some strong cinematography within these grand university walls), and although it hardly rewrites the rule book when it comes to political thrillers in general, there’s enough to be intrigued by for at least once decent viewing.
SO, TO SUM UP…
Cairo Conspiracy is a well-paced and strongly made political thriller that taps into some intriguing themes and settings, but a few conventional trappings leave this as merely a decent viewing.
