''People on the Top'' (, translit.Ahl el qema) is a

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

Egyptian

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

based on a story by

Naguib Mahfouz Naguib Mahfouz Abdelaziz Ibrahim Ahmed Al-Basha (, ; 11 December 1911 – 30 August 2006) was an Egyptian writer who won the 1988 Nobel Prize in Literature. In awarding the prize, the Swedish Academy described him as a writer "who, through wo ...

and directed by

Ali Badrakhan Ali Badrakhan (born April 25, 1946) is an Egyptian film director and screenwriter, the son of the director Ahmed Badrakhan. He worked as assistant to Fatin Abdel Wahab in '' Land of Hypocrisy'' in 1968, and with Youssef Chahine in the films ''S ...

. It stars

Soad Hosny Soad Mohammad Kamal Hosny (, ; 26 January 1943 – 21 June 2001) was an Egyptian actress. She was known as the "Cinderella of the Screen" and one of the most influential actresses in the Middle East and the Arab world. She is generally regarded a ...

Nour El-Sherif Nour El-Sherif (; 28 April 1946 – 11 August 2015), born Mohamad Geber Mohamad Abd Allah () was a prominent Egyptian actor. He has 6 films in the Top 100 Egyptian films list. El-Sherif was born in the working-class neighbourhood of Sayeda Zain ...

and

Ezzat El Alaili Ezzat El Alaili () (15 September 1934 – 5 February 2021) was an Egyptian actor who starred in over 300 films, TV series, and theatre plays since the 1960s. He had his bachelor's degree from the Higher Institute of Theatre Studies in 1960. Award ...

. The film revolves around the

Infitah ''Infitah'' ( ', "openness"), or Law 43 of 1974, was Egyptian president Anwar Sadat's policy of "opening the door" to private investment in Egypt in the years after the 1973 October War (Yom Kippur War) with Israel. ''Infitah'' was accompanie ...

that took place in the

1970s File:1970s decade montage.jpg, Clockwise from top left: U.S. President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office following the Watergate scandal in 1974; The United States was still involved in the Vietnam War ...

and its impact on Egyptian society through the enrichment of a

pickpocket Pickpocketing is a form of larceny that involves the stealing of money or other valuables from the person or a victim's pocket without them noticing the theft at the time. It may involve considerable dexterity and a knack for Misdirection (magic ...

through the Infitah and smuggling of goods through customs. A

police officer A police officer (also called policeman or policewoman, cop, officer or constable) is a Warrant (law), warranted law employee of a police, police force. In most countries, ''police officer'' is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. ...

refuses to allow the pickpocket to marry his sister and seeks to trap him. ''People on the Top'' is listed in the Top 100 Egyptian films. The film was selected as the Egyptian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the

54th Academy Awards The 54th Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored films released in 1981 and took place on March 29, 1982, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. During the ceremony, AMP ...

, but was not accepted as a nominee.Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Synopsis

The thief Zaatar works for Zaghloul, the owner of an import and export company. Zaghloul takes advantage of Zaatar's capabilities and assigns him tasks related to smuggling goods from customs. Zaatar falls in love with Siham, the sister of the police detective Muhammad, which angers Muhammad. Zaatar becomes independent from Zaghloul and begins his rivalry with him. Zaghloul proposes to marry Siham, and Muhammad welcomes him. Zaghloul reveals his truth to him, but he does not believe him.

Cast

as Siham *

as Zaatar *

as Muhammad * Omar El-Hariri as Zaghloul * Aida Riad as Gelgela * Mahmoud El-Qalaawy as Hosny * Nadia Ezzat as Sanaa * Nadia Rafiq as Zaheera * Nabil Noureddine as Officer * Hassan Hussein as Abu Saleh * Salah Rashwan as Refaat * Ibrahim Qadry as Hanash

References

External links

* 1981 films 1981 drama films Egyptian drama films 1980s Arabic-language films 1980s Egyptian films {{1980s-drama-film-stub

Synopsis

Cast

See also

References

External links