The Ajnabee's Guide to Life

Where Do We Go Now? would have pushed the envelope (pardon the pun) for the Oscars, as a film made by a woman during a particularly lean year for women filmmaker, but also for its subject matter. Ultimately, Labaki’s latest is about the vital role women play in solving the problems that men create, and teaches how we could all learn to get along if we only took the time to walk a few steps in our neighbor’s shoes.

On a hot desert morning in Doha, I finally watched Black Gold, in the air conditioned comfort of a dark screening room with plush seats. Leaving aside the powerful story, the great acting and the important themes, I was delighted further by what the film represented to me, an aficionada of Arab cinema, and someone who dares to dream that cinema can and will one day unite our “us against them” world.

By now we’ve all heard about the incident, involving Omar Sharif and a pushy Egyptian journo. Even though I was a few feet away, no I did not witness it personally, the video is unclear and so I’ll reserve my opinion. But what I can say is that I spent a good 30 minutes with Omar Sharif right before it all allegedly happened and he behaved like ever the gentleman in my presence. Now, about answering questions he doesn’t approve of or finds mundane, that’s a different story… Sharif is wonderfully evasive and refuses to say anything that can be used as a slogan for institutions or to promote an organization.