Cinema
عندما يقسو القدر
Abdallah al-Zarrouq · 1973
Synopsis
A young man and a young woman love each other in a town where money is short and where those around them keep watch. Their attachment runs up against poverty, social conditions and the rules that society sets against them. Nothing more is known.
Context
The film was put into production several years before reaching the screen, in a country that had some thirty cinemas fed on Egyptian and Italian programmes, the latter shown without Arabic translation to an audience of foreigners. Ali al-Hilouti produced, Abdelmajid Hamid handled the camera, Zahra Misbah and Omar al-Chouiref played the leads. The screening took place on 1 August 1973 at the al-Zahra cinema in Tripoli, which explains the two dates given in the sources. Those who later wrote the history of the trade judged these first attempts to fall short of the most basic requirements.
Who it is for
In Arabic. The film is not in circulation and is known through the press of its release, through the Arabic entries that repeat it, and through the testimony of those who worked in the profession at the time.
Prizes and reception
The first Libyan feature-length fiction film shown to an audience, and the starting point of a national production that never exceeded a few titles.