Representation of Homoeroticism in Egypt's Cinema Industry

Introduction

The main aim of this research is to examine the representation of homoeroticism or the view of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBTQ) community in Arab culture and cinema. Overall, there is a need to review the legal system in the Arab states to ensure that strict laws on the LBGTQ community are lifted and that this group has the same representation accorded to every other individual in the film industry (Hartal and Sasson-Levy, 2019). Although Islam as a religion has condemned sexual relationships before marriage in general, and particularly other sexual relationships that involve the same gender, it has not been able to end homoeroticism and homosexuality. The study will involve the definition of characters, the background spectra, and the development of scenarios. What a community can vividly accept as part of its system, is within the framework of what is referred to as censorship, and this is bestowed in the artistic material that constitutes the critical components of the concerned society (Hooker, 2017).

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The principal reason for the choice of topic is that it is a vital and sensitive topic in the Arab world (Hartal and Sasson-Levy, 2019), where governments and local communities remain homophobic on issues relating to homoeroticism. Cruel punishments have been bestowed on the community following religious belief, for example, prison sentences and death penalties (Kreps, 2012).

I will employ my film making knowledge to analyze the representation of LGBTQ in Arab cinema alongside a thorough examination of available literature about this spectrum. I feel that the way the LGBTQ community is viewed in the Middle East, particularly in Arab films, is rather insensitive, and in some cases, inhumane. Most people view them as outcasts and sinners who should not be represented in films.

History of Arab Cinema (Egypt)

Eliminating the old rule that has governed the Arab region for decades is not an easy task. However, queer Arab filmmakers are adopting new techniques to present non-conventional approaches to spread their stories and establish current pathways for otherwise isolated minorities (Dickinson, 2018). Historically, film production in Egypt began in 1896, with 1927`s Laila being the first piece to breakthrough. However, the 1840s, the 1950s, and 1960s are generally viewed to be the golden age of Egyptian cinema (Kama, 2019). During this period, Egypt's film industry was considered the third-largest in the whole world and attracted millions of audiences across the globe, as well as hundreds of Western and world movies to the country. In the year 1940, an entrepreneur and translator, Anis Ebeid, founded 'Anis Ebeid Films,' standing out as the first subtitling company in Egypt (Ali et al., 2015).

In 1952 after King Farouk was overthrown, political changes had little effect on the film industry application (Ahmed, 2018). Notably, since the beginning of the film industry in Egypt, lesbians, gays, transgender, and queers have been exposed to prejudice and marginalization, they are often viewed as the minority in the country's cinema industry. However, such discriminatory acts are not the explicit provision of the Egyptian judicial system (Miller, 2016). In other words, as a way of maintaining the social order, censorship regulations were used as instruments of evaluating and curtailing freedom of expression with regards to politics, religion, and sex (Napper, 2018.).

Effects and Cause in Representation of LGBTQ in Arab Culture

The LGBTQ community has been affected by the religious context in the Arab countries. Islam as a culture is highly phallocentric, and although there is little mention of female sexuality, any form of homosexual practice and premarital sex is condemned. Many individuals are often exposed to social stigma such as ostracism and hate crimes from their own communities. According to Napper (2018), both the government and the people view homoerotic sentiment as a kind of illness that needs to be eradicated

Despite the challenges that queer Arabs faced during their initial cinema representation in 1954, at times, these prejudices were politically motivated, planned to safeguard the ruling authority from any criticism, either from opposition parties or other radical groups (Chan, 2017).

Because Arab culture condemn homosexuality and often viewed the act as purely 'Western,' homosexual Muslims have been subjected to violence and discrimination from people who are against the LGBTQ (Rahman and Valliani, 2016). The illegality and stigma surrounding the LGBTQ community have suppressed their participation in the socio-political aspect in Arab states. The strong belief that homosexuality is not in the Islamic culture has further exposed the LGBTQ group as the minority in the Arab world (Adam, 2019.).

Following an evaluation of the Arab culture, homosexual practices are usually considered as unacceptable acts in society (Chahine and Massad, 1999). Thus, in many Arab countries, there are laws created against homoeroticism and homosexuality, and punishments can be fierce, including banishment and even death. Therefore, contrary to the Western states where there are laws granting the LGBTQ group opportunities in the film industry, the Arab cinema industry is stricter and more discriminating (Braouezec, 2016.).

Stereotypes \ Development of Characters/Narrative

Overall, the LGBTQ community is not unique to many Egyptian cinemas. For instance, the same is depicted in Egyptian movies such as Bent El-Basha El-modir that was directed by Ahmed Galal, which was among the earliest produced cinema depicting cross-dressing (Phan, 2015). In many cinemas, homosexuality was usually symbolized by past challenges in the homosexual character`s life. This was in connection with the marginalization spectra for instance homosexuals was sometimes categorized as characters that were not supposed to access health services

On this subject, male sexuality characters in Arab cinema were exposed to discrimination in terms of acquiring health services that revealed the society had a negative view of homosexuality. This kind of characterization in the Egyptian cinema depicted that homosexuality was outcast in that society (Hooker, 2017).

Consequently, the perception about lesbianism also became a debate, and both Egypt's cinema industry and literary have weighed in on the issue. Even so, in the Arab world, the scope of the discussions concerning lesbianism and homosexuality in movies and literature shapes the public's perception. For instance, during the 1970s, more than six films were centered on issues regarding gay, lesbian, and queer aspects (Roosseno, 2015.), however, the general view of the plotting revealed different treatment of the topic which resulted in public criticism. Despite the first approach where lesbian and homosexual characters were prejudiced and marginalized, there was also a second type of plotting which had no discrimination or negative preview of LGBTQ community. Nevertheless, these kinds of depictions about homoeroticism were very scarce (Roosseno, 2015), and many members of the LGBTQ group were still subjected to fierce laws and punishments.

Analysis of Three Films

To properly evaluate the representation of LGBTQ in Arab cinema, a profound discussion of various movies is required. In the section below, I am going to discuss, compare, and contrast three movies; Hamam Al-Malatily, 1954 Miss Hanafi, and Yacoubian Building.

Hamam Al-Malatily was an Egyptian 1973 movie directed by Salah Abu Sheif. One of the characters in the film, known as Raouf Bey, was homosexual. The cinema also includes other characters who are prostitutes and shows excessive nude scenes. There is the theme of homosexuality, which is still abnormal to society (Griffin, 2018). On the other end, Miss Hanafi is an Egyptian comedy released by Galili al-Bendari in 1954 (Menicucci, 1998). The film was focused on illuminating a man who undergoes an accidental sex exchange. It initially concentrated on the woman-to-man scene but later changed to man-to-woman just for comedy value. Lastly is Yacoubian Building, which is a novel by Egyptian Alaa-Al-Aswany. This book was turned to a film of the same name in 2006 and later into a TV series in 2007. The film focuses on a prestige building that was vacated by the rich and then occupied by the poor after King Farouk was removed from power.

The three films discussed above have different characterizations and plots; however, the themes of immorality are portrayed in Hamam Al-Malatily and 1954 Miss Hanafi (Jacquemond, 2013). The last cinema, dubbed the Yacoubian Building, focuses on economic change in Egypt. The films join in one similar purpose; they are aimed at portraying the dominating moral decay and social irresponsibility (Jacquemond, 2013).

Cinematic Discourse

Many authors have produced artistic material that illuminates the discourse of the representation of the LGBTQ in the Arab cinema. Among them is Youssef Chanine, who was a renowned Egyptian filmmaker right from 1950 until his death (Chahine and Massad, 1999). Chanine had a unique way in which he represented his arguments in his works; which resulted in the perception of him as a daring filmmaker, thus, he became the center of all controversies following his liberal views. H brought to light his responsibility as a brave and versatile artist, unlike other artists (Chahine and Massad, 1999). Many of his works depicted sexuality and political critique. He made films that even other Egyptian directors would not use; for instance, his classic cinemas were Cairo Station and Sparrow.

Unlike Chanine, other authors like Alaa-Al-Aswany, who wrote the film Yacoubian Building, used a variety of styles in their filmmaking (Daniels, 2008). In the Yacoubian Building, the author is not criticizing the government about homosexuality or other aspects of leadership. However, he uses metaphors to link the poor and the rich. How homosexuality is covered in the film is taboo-breaking, and the symbols used depicts the exact message of an essential component of homosexuality, even if the styling is different from that of Chanine (Daniels, 2008).

Conclusion

There is a significant challenge in the way the LBGTQ community is represented in the Arab cinema since 1954. Gay, Homosexuality, lesbianism, and transgender and considered queer in the Arab community. The political and social norms of many Arab states consider homosexuality as an unacceptable social norm. To save this community from discrimination and even the loose legal systems, advocacy should be done both by the government and the local communities to strengthen the fundamental rights of the LBGTQ community.

References

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Ahmed, H.R. (2018). Egyptian cultural expansionism: Taha Hussein confronts the French in North Africa (1950-1952). Die Welt des Islams, 58(4), pp.409-441. Retrieved November 19, 2019 from https://brill.com/view/journals/wdi/58/4/article-p409_1.xml

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Braouezec, K. (2016). Identifying common patterns of discourse and strategy among the new extremist movements in Europe: The case of the English Defence League and the Bloc Identitaire. Journal of Intercultural Studies, 37(6), pp.637-648. Retrieved November 19, 2019 from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07256868.2016.1235023

Chahine, Y. and M...