CAIRO CONSPIRACY Reviewed by GREG KING
Director: Tarik Saleh
Stars: Tawfeek Barhom, Fares Fares, Jawad Alkwil, Ahmed Laissoui, Medhi Debhi, Makram Khoury, Ramzi Choukair.
Adam (Tawfeek Barhom, from The Rhythm Section, etc) is the son of a fisherman from the small rural village of Manzala. He earns a state sponsored scholarship to study at the prestigious Al Azhar University in Cairo, the internationally revered centre of Islamic teaching in Egypt. Not long after he arrives at the institute the Grand Imam dies and the scramble to select his successor begins. There are three popular teachers at the school who are most likely to be appointed to the position which carries significant political influence in Egyptian society. However, the Egyptian government is keen to ensure that Sheikh Beblawi (Jawad Alkwil) becomes the next Grand Imam as he has a political ideology more aligned to their views.
Adam befriends Raeed (Ahmed Laissaoui), his bunkmate in the dormitory who is also something of a misfit within the strict disciplinary demands of the school. Another friend is Zizo (Medhi Debhi), who turns out to be an agent planted in the school by State security to keep tabs on the various cliques and groups who have infiltrated the university and their subversive political views. But after he is exposed he recruits Adam as his replacement. When Zizo is killed, Colonel Ibrahim (Fares Fares, who played Assad in the Department Q series of films), his controller, approaches Adam and convinces him to become their eyes and ears.
Adam is tasked with infiltrating the various cliques within the mosque and using his guile to help shape the election to the government’s favour. Adam grapples with his conscience as it becomes clear that his assignment is more complicated than it first seems. And as suspicion grows about his role, he finds himself in danger.
Cairo Conspiracy plays out like a John Le Carre spy thriller as it delves into a murky world of political intrigue, deception, and the high stakes power struggle between politics and religion in Egypt. The film certainly has topical relevance as the fictional events depicted in the film have since become a reality in Egypt. The film has been written and directed by Swedish born filmmaker Tarik Saleh who has been declared persona non grata by the Egyptian authorities after he was critical of Egypt’s secret services in his previous film The Nile Hilton Incident. Prevented from shooting in Egypt Saleh instead shot the film in Turkey, and the scenes set inside the mosque were shot largely inside the magnificent Suleymanye Mosque in Turkey. The film is visually rich thanks to some fine cinematography from Pierre Aim (La Haine, etc), and the stylish production design of Roger Rosenberg (The Nile Hilton Incident, etc) gives us a strong sense of place. When the action moves to the streets of Cairo itself, the environment seems shrouded in menace and an element of danger as Aim’s cinematography deliberately creates a visual contrast between the brightly lit interiors of the mosque and the shadowy streets of the city.
Saleh’s direction is measured, and he slowly ramps up the claustrophobic tension with plenty of duplicity and betrayals and secret meetings between Adam and Ibrahim. Cairo Conspiracy is a slow burn thriller that is also a study of power and ambition and corruption. Having helmed episodes of tv series like Westworld though he knows the tropes the the thriller genre and his handling of the complex material is quite assured.
In his fourth collaboration with Saleh, Fares perfects a dishevelled and world-weary look that suits his cynical character, who is conflicted by the demands of his job and his own personal faith, but he also injects a hint of ruthlessness into his performance. Barhom brings a naiveté and youthful innocence to his role, but he grows in strength and confidence as the film progresses.
★★★
