With “The Eagles of the Republic”, Tarik Saleh signs a brilliant film on political manipulation

Three years after the success of “The Cairo Conspiracy”, the filmmaker offers a new dive into the mysteries of Egyptian power, between comedy and film noir.

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After Cairo confidential et The Cairo ConspiracySwedish director Tarik Saleh completes his Cairo trilogy with The Eagles of the Republicin theaters Wednesday, November 12, which tells the story of an actor drawn against his will into the mysteries of Egyptian power.

George Fahmy, nicknamed the “pharaoh of the screens”, is a cinema actor adored throughout the country. A great seducer, he lives with Donya, a young woman who could be his daughter, and spends his time lying. He has little concern for his eldest son, who lives with his mother. Convinced that his notoriety will exempt him from pledging allegiance to the autocratic President al-Sissi, he thinks he can refuse the offer made to him by the country’s upper echelons to play the role of the president in a film to his glory.

However, he ended up giving in, under threat, still believing it was possible to divert this project from his propagandist designs. This is without taking into account the presence on the set of Doctor Mansour, an intractable security guard, at the behest of the president. George does the job, hangs out with the president’s inner circle, and even strikes up a romance with the wife of the Minister of the Armed Forces. Little by little, he finds himself trapped by a power ready to do anything to stay in place.

With a very well-crafted scenario, full of surprises and fun (especially at the beginning, afterward, we laugh less), this new film by Tarik Saleh is a dive into the mysteries of Egyptian power, held by Marshal al-Sissi since his coup d’état in 2013. Tarik Saleh treats the subject from the angle of manipulation, and more particularly the subjugation of artists for propaganda purposes.

Lebanese actor Fares Fares, already starring in the second chapter of the trilogy, excels in the role of this movie star, charmer and liar, who goes from braggadocio to gravity, then to terror. It is drawn in opposition to the character of Doctor Mansour, a figure of moral rectitude pushed to its height, with the seed of an extremist.

The filmmaker mocks power by featuring a battery of puppet men, decked out in uniforms covered with medals, and their military parades, which glorify force. He gives the beautiful role to women, readers, cultivated, driven by passion, where men, pathetic, are only good at committing nonsense, uttering threats, behaving badly with their wives and lovers.

A twist revives the intrigue for the last third of the film, which takes on a more serious and more seriously political tone, reminding us that these men at the helm of power are not only pathetic clowns, but also cynical beings, ready to do anything to keep the keys to the palace.

We recognize in this new feature film the cinematic touch of Tarik Saleh, an irreverence bathed in the yellow lights of the nights of the Egyptian capital. Here he enjoys painting the excitement of film sets, paying homage to the golden age of Egyptian cinema, from the credits, against a backdrop of posters with a very recognizable aesthetic.

Can we resist, and how to resist? These are the questions posed by this new black comedy by Tarik Saleh, which evokes by its spiciness the cinema of Billy Wilder, and by its commitment that of Costa-Gavras.

Genre : Drame, thriller
Director: Tarik Saleh
Avec : Fares, Triki Zineb, Lyna Khodri
Country: France, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Germany
Duration: 2h09
Release: November 12, 2025
Distributor: Memento
Synopsis: George Fahmy, Egypt’s most adored actor, agrees under duress to star in a film ordered by the country’s highest authorities. He finds himself immersed in the narrow circle of power. Like a moth attracted to light, he begins an affair with the mysterious wife of the general who oversees the film.