Dream Away

Thursday 18 October, Cinema 1, 8:45pm

 

Once a popular holiday destination, Sharm El Sheikh is now desolate, emptied of tourists. And yet, the resort’s stewards continue to deliver energetic morning exercise routines. The elaborately painted black-and-gold ‘tiger-man’ waits to be photographed. And slickly dressed DJs prepare sets for empty clubs. All their salaries have been slashed, but something is better than nothing. The legacy of the Arab Spring and the confusion that ensued looms large over this hazy desert landscape. Meanwhile, a lonely truck transports the strange figure of a monkey, to whom the young hotel workers follow around and reveal their feelings – dreaming of love and the lives they want to live. Wonderfully inventive and utterly unique, Dream Away blends magical realism with a fascinating reflection on the state of Egypt today.