Three out of
Five Stars
Running Time:
96 mins
A tense political drama set against the backdrop of the protests in Cairo’s Tahrir Square that began on January 25th 2011, Winter of Discontent stars Amr Waked as an activist who realises that the situation in Egypt is about to get very much worse.
What’s it all about?
An exploration of the lives of an activist (Amr), a journalist named Farah and a state security officer called Adel, as each play their part in the Egyptian revolution of 2011. Amr, already a victim of torture in 2009 under the regime, holes up in his apartment dreading the events that will unfold. Farah soon realises that the news she is reporting to her country is not an accurate reflection of the current events, and Adel is the harsh enforcer using inhumane tactics to silence the political activists.
Each story takes place outside of Tahrir Square with each character having to make difficult and life changing decisions in the uncertain last days of Hosni Mubarak’s rule.
The Good
In Winter of Discontent, director Ibrahim El Batout places the viewer directly into the surreal and chaotic atmosphere of the time. We meet Amr with no introduction, sitting behind four computer screens watching footage of a man describing the intricacies of how he was tortured. The sickening description of torture precedes the real thing and the harrowing reality of what it was like to live through that time becomes apparent.
Amr Waked is quite brilliant as he makes the shift from broken man to impassioned activist. El Batout paints a very real account of how surveillance and media were manipulated against those involved in the uprising, and how the internet was integral in helping to spread the word. Farah Youssef’s emotional outpourings and speech to the future generation are extremely moving and clearly spell out the reasons for the revolution.
El Batout is excellent at displaying the isolation and fear of the city with his use of desolate settings and darkened corners. He slowly moves the camera over a landscape letting the backdrop speak for itself and he escalates tension expertly, and he really captures the feeling of a ‘Winter of Discontent’.
The Bad
Information is spewed out in the newsroom setting of Farah’s story making this section of Winter of Discontent feel clunky and overloaded, and the mood occasionally shifts from tense to melodramatic marring the understated tone. The shifting narratives and time frames confuse at times, especially in Amr’s section as when you witness his torture it’s not clear when exactly this is taking place. Unfortunately this film has been made too soon, with the current news unfolding in Egypt overshadowing the triumphant ending. Though as the number of atrocities and casualties are listed at the end of the film, the downbeat ‘and counting’ does point to the reality that the fight is far from over.
Worth seeing?
Winter of Discontent is difficult viewing at times, especially because of the current state of affairs in Egypt, but this dramatic account of the Egyptian revolution of 2011 is well directed, informative and should keep your attention.