The Nile Hilton Incident

Egyptian film star Fares Fares is the beleaguered police detective trying to solve the murder of a prostitute at the Nile Hilton, but encounters nothing but roadblocks and misdirection, some laid by his own superiors. In Egypt, they apparently frown on attempts to solve crimes committed by top government figures. And to get information or to get out of trouble, everything has a price. Money is always changing hands. The viewer wonders if the detective will ever get the chance to find the killer.

Sounds like an interesting murder mystery, but truth be told, it's not as exciting or mysterious as it could be. Director Tarik Saleh tries mightily but his efforts come up short. "The Nile Hilton Incident" is heavy on atmosphere but lacks clarity to hold the audience's interest. Corruption, graft and bribery abound and the bleak, washed out color photography is in keeping with the squalid streets of the Egyptian cities and the moral underpinnings of local officials. The 'perp' is known early on but his identity gets lost the muddled mix of names and titles of all the government employees involved. And, without giving it away, noir fans are used to a more satisfying resolution of matters than Director Saleh has afforded us.

Movie about a corrupt cop who tries to solve a murder to a songstress in Cairo (Egypt) and gets deeper and deeper into the crooked administration of the government.

This is one of the best cop films of recent times.

It's really great to have a seldom seen location for crime. I think many are fed up with New York, L. A., San Francisco, Chicago ... .

The acting of the disillusioned cop is very good.

The film score is unobtrusive and doesn't push to the fore.

Cinematography is awesome. There are cool drives through nightly Cairo.

The movie is at the same level like other great films about corruption e.g. Chinatown or Bad Lieutenant (Abel Ferrara).

The Nile Hilton Incident is a political thriller following a murder at the Nile Hilton Hotel in Cairo during the Egyptian Revolution in January 2011.

The movie pulls off both the political elements as well as the more cinematic mysteriousness without being too much of either.

The acting is first class, especially Fares Fares, who probably smoked enough cigarettes to keep Marlboro in business forever. His character is not only interesting, well written and dynamic, but most of the struggle is internal. It's a very restrained act and he does it perfectly. Fares Fares is a legitimately good physical performer, not just here but in general.

The lack of musical score is an interesting choice. It's only used during big character moments and adds a sense of importance to those scenes.

The Nile Hilton Incident is veritable, competently shot and professionally acted.

About the story line .. it's such important to say this movie describes the egyptian political society so close that i - for a while - thought that Noredin Mostafa is a real character ..

There is a fact that the idea of the main story line is real .. Suzanne Tamim was a charming but not widely known lebanese singer who was found dead in her appartment in Dubai in 2008 .. the investigators in Dubai have known the identity of the killer (Mohsen El Sokkary) who was an ex-cop in state security section (a section known for it's brutal ways in protecting the whole regime and always against the people of Egypt) .. later he confessed the murder after incitement by Hisham Talaat Mostafa who was a close member in the circle around Gamal Mobarak ..both Hisham and Mohsen faced trial in Egyptian court and put in prison for 15 yrs ..

The movie describes the Egyptian society and police corruption very well .. may be the fact is much horrifying .. this was one of the main causes of the glorious egyptian revolution in 2011 ..

The only critic to the film is the sound directory is so weak .. sometimes i found it so hard to hear the dialog ..

"Chinatown" it isn't, though hardly a film can be blamed for not getting close to the archetype, still this is the fountain it draws from. There is a sense of impending doom to it, an urgent cry for some kind political change; unfortunately though, it somehow lacks in editing sharpness while, more importantly, suffering from some kind of belief that the Egyptian revolution would make things better. Yet, I must admit, that its historical naivete is overthrown by its imprinted fatalism and the humanity in Fares presence.