''The River of Love'' ( ar, نهر الحب, ''Nahr al-Hob'') is a

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Jan ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

ian

romance film Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their journey ...

starring

Faten Hamama Faten Ahmed Hamama ( ar, فاتن حمامه ; 27 May 1931 – 17 January 2015) was an Egyptian film and television actress and film producer. She was the first wife of Ezz El-Dine Zulficar. She made her screen debut in 1939, when she was ...

and Omar Sharif. The film is directed by the

Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

film director

Ezz El-Dine Zulficar Ezz El-Dine Ahmed Mourad Zulficar (Egyptian Arabic: عز الدين ذو الفقار, ; October 28, 1919 – July 1, 1963) was an Egyptian film director, screenwriter, actor and producer known for his distinctive style, which blends romance and ...

and based on

Leo Tolstoy Count Lev Nikolayevich TolstoyTolstoy pronounced his first name as , which corresponds to the romanization ''Lyov''. () (; russian: link=no, Лев Николаевич Толстой,In Tolstoy's day, his name was written as in pre-refor ...

's 1877 novel, ''

Anna Karenina ''Anna Karenina'' ( rus, «Анна Каренина», p=ˈanːə kɐˈrʲenʲɪnə) is a novel by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy, first published in book form in 1878. Widely considered to be one of the greatest works of literature ever writt ...

''. The film was listed in the

top 100 Egyptian films Top 100 Egyptian films aliases: CIFF 100 Egyptian films or Greatest 100 Egyptian films in 20th century or Top 100 films in the centenary of Egyptian cinema (Egyptian Arabic: قائمة أفضل مئة فيلم في مئوية السينما الم ...

in 1996.

Plot

Taher

Pasha Pasha, Pacha or Paşa ( ota, پاشا; tr, paşa; sq, Pashë; ar, باشا), in older works sometimes anglicized as bashaw, was a higher rank in the Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitar ...

( Zaki Rostom), a wealthy and powerful man, falls in love with Nawal (

) and decides to marry her. She accepts in order to save her brother from jail due to unpaid debts. After their wedding, Nawal's life turns into a miserable one, living lonely in the Pasha's house. She gets pregnant and gives birth to her only child. A young military officer named Khalid ( Omar Sharif) falls in love with Nawal, who returns his love. For months the lovers keep their relationship a secret, until Taher Pasha finds out that his wife might be having an affair. She faces her tyrant husband and demands a divorce, but he refuses. Nawal's brother threatens to publicly revealing Taher's wrongdoings and transgressions to the press if he won't divorce Nawal. Nawal travels with Khalid to Lebanon. Taher Pasha sends some of his people to spy on her and receives pictures clearly showing Nawal with Khalid. Furious, Taher divorces her and keeps custody of their child. Khalid dies in a battle in the war. Nawal returns to Egypt and tries to get her child back, but fails. Despairing and devastated, Nawal commits suicide by binding herself to a railroad.

Cast

as Nawal * Omar Sharif as Khalid * Zaki Rostom as Taher Pasha *

Omar El-Hariri Omar Mokhtar El-Hariri ( – 2 November 2015) was a leading figure of the National Transitional Council of Libya who served as the Minister of Military Affairs in 2011, during the Libyan Civil War. He controlled the National Liberation Army and ...

as Mamdouh * Fuad Al Mohandes as Fuad, Khalid's friend

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:River of Love, The 1960 films 1960s Arabic-language films Egyptian romance films 1960s romance films Films based on Anna Karenina Films directed by Ezz El-Dine Zulficar