Tue 22 August | 9 pm
UMM KULTHUM
A VOICE LIKE EGYPT (Egitto) (Michael Goldman, 1996, 67’)
Told by Omar Sharif, this is the first documentary shot to present the Diva od Arabic world to the American public. Goldman's documentary, full of scenes of concerts, colourful anecdotes and sequences of classical Egyptians films about Umm Kulthum, places Kulthum's life and career in the context of Egypt's 20th century history. The camera explores the extraordinary charm she exudes by taking us to the village in the Nile Delta where she was born and in the marketplaces, cafes and streets of Cairo where she lived and worked.
From Nobel Prize winner Naguib Mahfouz to a 12 year old girl in an open air restaurant everybody talks of the importance that Umm Kulthum's music has had in their life, they sing her songs in front of the camera. Kulthum will be long remembered as a legend of Egyptian music.
