an entertaining satire on Egyptian power

Tarik Saleh persists in his charge against Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi. “It’s not that I’m a big admirer of al-Sissi and that I want to put him in every one of my films, but I have no choice because he is a constant. He will remain in power until his death. »

In The Eagles of the Republica renowned star is cast to play al-Sissi – whom he looks nothing like – in a propaganda biopic. It’s Fares Fares, in the impeccable costume of George Fahmy’s character, nicknamed the “pharaoh of the big screen”. Here he is, collaborator, accomplice, compromise, drawn into perilous intrigues against the backdrop of a vaudevilleesque affair with the wife of the general responsible for supervising the filming.

George Fahmy is a movie star, therefore already a product of the system: his compromise is not ideological but professional. He does not resist out of conviction; he survives out of vanity. His conscience still sleeps.

After Cairo confidential (2017) et The Cairo Conspiracy (2022), always flanked by his favorite actor Fares Fares, Tarik Saleh mocks the Egyptian power, a fierce critic of the Sissi regime, even if less sharp than previously. The film could have dug deeper, become murkier, more incisive; he opts for an entertaining satire, centered on the creation of a “bad film” being made before our eyes. Saleh relies on the second degree – at the risk of diluting the criticism.

The opposite of media exploitation

The scenario is confusing, but less false than it seems: authoritarian regimes have long used images for propaganda purposes. Tarik Saleh is inspired by a real event. In Egypt, the al-Sissi regime has subjugated entertainment.

“The government has taken control of the entire film and television industry. He bought all the private channels. And since they belonged to the army, it was decided to produce a television series about the rise of the president. The choice fell on a tall and handsome actor, Yasser Galal, to play al-Sissi, a rather short man,” explains the director. “It was absurd. I was watching this series, and there was no irony. My first thought was: What if I was called to direct it? What if my friend Fares were to play the role? What would we do? We couldn’t refuse. »

This series glorifies Sissi as an exemplary, courageous and pious hero. Tarik Saleh therefore takes up the idea to better bring to light the work of reconstructing official history by means of Sissi’s fictionalized stories: how the fictional lie fuels the little mythology of a legendary hero claiming to have saved Egypt, while his opponents languish in prison or have disappeared. The Eagles of the Republic possesses at least this essential virtue: it unmasks the masquerade. He exaggerates the official lie to the point of absurdity, like a cartoonist would do.

The Eagles of the Republic by Tarik Saleh, in theaters this Wednesday, November 12. Duration: 2 hours 09 minutes.