CAIRO STATION

by Youssef Chahine

Presenters : Jana Zaarour and Huma Rehman

Outline
• Introduction
• Director : Youssef Chahine
• Historical background
• Summary of the movie
• Categorization of the movie
• Analysis of some scenes of the movie
• Conclusion
Introduction
• Cairo station , also called the iron gate is a 1958 is an Egyptian
drama film directed by Youssef chahine .
• The film was selected as the Egyptian entry for the best foreign
language Film at the 31st Academy awards.
• Since 1970s , the film was found renewed interest with new
generations
 Director Youssef Chahine
• Youssef Chahine was an Egyptian film director .
•  He was active in the Egyptian film industry from 1950 until
his death
•  In Cairo he has his own production company, Misr
International, consisting of theaters and a studio.
• His first film to earn an international reputation, Bab al-
Hadid (Cairo Station) startled audiences in 1958. 
• A winner of the Cannes 50th Anniversary Award
 Historical background
• Cairo station debuted in 1958. With the overthrow of the
Egyptian monarchy in 1952 , the ability of Youssef Chahine to
tackle themes of the urban working class, gender-based violence
and sexual repression is important to highlight as it demonstrates
Chahine ability to push the boundaries of Egyptian Cinema,
something they would not be able to do when the film industry
was nationalized in 1966. By intermixing film genres ,Chahine
was able to vividly portray Egyptian society as it was during the
1950's and in doing so provide Egyptian and international
viewers a glimpse into Egypt's changing societal ideologies, and
values in a post-revolutionary world
 Summary of the movie Cairo station
• During a hot day in Cairo’s main station, Qenawii, a disabled rural migrant, is offered
a job peddling papers and magazines.

• He becomes obsessed with Hanouma, a beautiful, vivacious woman who sells soft
drinks to commuters, working without official permission.

• Hanouma rejects Qenawi’s desperate proposal of marriage, and, as night falls, he

attempts to murder her in a fit of thwarted jealousy.
Categorization of the movie

• Through Bab el Hadid, Chahine effectively created a unique fusion between

neorealist convention, Egyptian melodrama and Hollywood narrative style,
through which he began to portray contemporary Egypt.

• Bab al-Hadid defies monolithic categorization.

• Filled with elements of ‘social realism,’ one recent critic has been more described
as a “thriller” and “psychosexual drama”, filled with the “usual stuff of noir
mysteries.”
Qenawi- The Evil Main Character
Sympathy for Qenawi
Sympathy for Qenawi
Hanouma
The Cola-girls
Abou- Seri
Film’s Location
Elements of the modern era
The fast pace of twentieth century
Sexual Frustration portrayed through Qenawi
Male gaze/ sexualization of women
The traveling Lover
Violence
Off-Screen Sex Scene
The Couple Portraying Conservative Egypt
Qenawi and Hannuma’s relationship
An important scene