Asmaa

Always high expectations makes it harder to reach but before going to the movies theater to watch this movie I guaranty that You will get a feeling during and after the end ,that feeling when You see a good movie and You want it never ends and after it that feeling that there is a hope ,It's not just a story of someone suffer from a disease accepting and living with it alone but It's about someone suffer from the negativity of the society and the way the people deals .. all Actors specially Hend Sabry and Maged El Kedwani did a great job ,the directing was so professionally I'm really Proud of Him and I'll wait for he's next movie ..

During years and years of watching and tuning into a movie addict; I got used to movie stories, Director methods, editing and cinematography styles and twists but every now and then; a movie comes and challenge all that.

It doesn't really challenge it with the new effects and methods provided, but with the story building, characters and the heart investment in that movie.

And that's what happened with the movie "Asmaa" a movie that came to retrieve my own faith in the Arabic and Egyptian Cinema. The movie was basically an independent effort to resurrect a dead story and give life to that thrown newspaper or medical files that once held the details of a real human being that lived upon us.

The true story was reborn again through the camera and imagination of its Director (Amr Salama) and the people working on this movie; as we see (Asmaa – brilliantly portrayed by Hind Sabry) a woman who accepted what was written in her Faith dealing with the HIV virus however trying hard to protect and survive her surrounding through her good yet stubborn heart and mind.

Through the shaking camera movement the director toke us on a journey telling the story of a woman who fought her way delivering her message through the colorful scenes that reflected on smiling tearful faces of the audience just before taking us back to that awful truth that people trying to ignore or deal with it with judgment before finding the solution.

A great portray of the Egyptian (and Middle Eastern) society and its way of dealing with a matter that is considered to be out side the box or consideration.

It's hard to go deeper with this movie description without rescuing any spoilers in this story that was full of raw human emotions.

A great salute to each person who worked on this movie and for delivering such a message to ask each one of us; a love letter to look at our own reflections before judging what is around us.

AIDS may be the fuel in Asmaa's engine, but director/writer Amr Salama doesn't hesitate to take on board the position of Muslim women in society, following on from Cairo 678, which was also produced by Egypt's New Century.

As such, international interest will perhaps initially be led by the Diaspora, but the issues of the Arab Spring regarding personal empowerment in a changing society are also explored in this film, and should attract interest. Salama, who collaborated on Tahrir 2011: The Good The Bad And The Politician, blends a populist approach and pacy tricks - much cross-cutting and colour coding - with more subtle emotional notes in this story which is partly based on a real-life tale which had a far more tragic outcome.

Salama wrote Asmaa's script with actress Hend Sabry in mind, and she makes the most of the opportunity to deliver a strong lead performance as Asmaa, a 45-year-old woman living in Cairo with her father Hosni (Sayed Ragab) and daughter Habiba (Fatma Adel).

In a dramatic introduction, Asmaa is wheeled into an operating theatre where she is urged to stay quiet. Salama intercuts this with a support group meeting for AIDS sufferers, where it emerges that Asmaa is a-symptomatic but will die from a gall bladder complaint if doctors continue to refuse to treat her because of her HIV-positive condition. And refuse, they do.

Asmaa, a humble and devout Muslim widow, works as a cleaner in Cairo airport and struggles to support her family; her daughter does not know anything of her mother's plight and stays out late at night, while her father never leaves the couch. Flashbacks begin to paint a picture of stubborn Asmaa's humble rural background as a carpet weaver and doomed marriage to Mossaad (Hany Adel), but whatever the situation she finds herself in, the increasingly-ill Asmaa is resolute in her refusal to reveal how she contracted the virus.

Asmaa is offered a chance to change things - for herself, and perhaps for others - by appearing on a powerful TV chat show hosted by Mohsen (Maged El Kedwany); the producers tell her that if she makes a personal plea, a doctor may step forward and volunteer to operate. There is one condition however: Mohsen insists she shows her face.

This will-she or won't-she tension helps propel Asmaa forward over some troublesome moments of high drama, particularly in Asmaa's home village, and Salama keeps a firm hand on the edit whenever the pace threatens to slacken, cross-cutting back to Cairo and a budding potential romance with fellow patient Shafiq. Strong visual motifs such as Asmaa's highly-coloured past, the greys of modern-day Cairo, and the warm orange hues of the support group, can be a little over-played, however, but Asmaa makes its points clearly and firmly, reminding us that the issue of AIDS still has many borders to cross

This film is just as uplifting as it is tragic. Amr Salama brings up HIV/AIDS in a society that typically shunned or turned a blind eye to the issue. A woman contracting HIV, in a conservative community that associates the disease with either a sexually transmitted infection from an extra marital affair or drug use injection, has to deal with not only what the disease is doing to her body, but also with the way people will punish her if they found out she has it. This poignant drama promises an honest perspective into the Egyptian culture and the average Egyptian's perspective on such delicate and taboo issues.

Although it may be a long road ahead, Salama definitely helped raise awareness and maybe even recede the social stigma associated with HIV/AIDS in some way. A beautiful performance by Hend Sabry was able to evoke empathy and compassion towards people with the disease in a ruthless community that can't help but look down on them. This is a must-see, and if you think it might be too depressing for your taste, don't worry. Maged ElKedwany's equally brilliant performance will either downright crack you up or at least put a smile on your face a few times throughout the movie. Have fun!

I haven't cried in my whole life like I have cried while watching this film while mostly it was sad tears some of it was happy tears, it's a must-watch!!!