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| Africa: North |
| Omar El Sherif provokes Muslims once again |
| 2004-05-22 |
| Prominent Egyptian actor Omar El Sherif raised a wave of disapproval and rage amongst religious Muslims with his new movie âHidalgoâ, which is not screened yet in the Arab world. The Council of American Islamic Relations (CAIR) condemned the movie by saying its depreciating Arabs and Muslims. American media also criticized the subject of the movie. Producers of the film stressed that they consulted Muslim specialists before starting the movie, according to the Egyptian based daily, Al-Gomhorya. The story of the movie is based on the true story of the greatest long-distance horse race ever run, "Hidalgo", which is an epic action-adventure and one manâs journey of personal redemption. Held yearly for centuries, the Ocean of Fire - a 3,000 mile survival race across the Arabian Desert - was a challenge restricted to the finest Arabian horses ever bred, the purest and noblest lines, owned by the greatest royal families. In 1890, Omar performs the role of a wealthy Sheikh, Riyad al-Arabi, who invites the American jockey and his horse to enter the race for the first time. Frank T. Hopkins (Mortensen) was a cowboy and dispatch rider for the US cavalry who had once been billed as the greatest rider the West had ever known. The Sheik would put his claim to the test, pitting the American cowboy and his mustang, Hidalgo, against the worldâs greatest Arabian horses and Bedouin riders - some of whom were determined to prevent the foreigner from finishing the race. For Frank, the Ocean of Fire becomes not only a matter of pride and honor, but a race for his very survival as he and his horse, Hidalgo, attempt the impossible. The movie had many phrases that can be described as humiliating to Arabs and Muslims. In one of the scenes, the movie described Prophet Mohammed as a pirate before he became a prophet. The movie also shows Omar wondering about the reasons why women wear Hijab, and also looks down to the belief of destiny in Islamic religion. At the end of the movie the Arab jockey commits suicide, which contradicts the beliefs of Islam. El Sherif had recently caused for the rise of a storm of anger among Arab Muslims during an interview to Times magazine. Omar made his remarks during the middle of a nomination to the Oscars for his latest film "Mr. Abraham and the Jewels of the Holy Koran" by different international film committees. His film has been suggested to enter the race for best foreign film in addition to nominating him for an award for best actor. The remarks that caused the storm of anger were Omarâs revealing that he has two grandchildren, one Jewish and the other a Muslim. The actor had stressed that he does not interfere in religious matters and is giving his grandchildren the freedom of choosing which religion they want to follow. Omar added that he will not in any way try to influence them to both follow Islam even if his Muslim grandchild wanted to convert. Omarâs comments came with his new movie, which is about love between an old Muslim and a young Jew. Sherif described his new film as "a comeback." The love portrayed in film is not the kind of dashing romantic role that made him originally famous. This time, it is a story of love between a lonely old Muslim shopkeeper and a neglected Jewish teen in Paris during the 1960s, who flee loneliness together through a unique relationship and friendship. During the course of events in the film, the Jewish man eventually decides to convert to Islam due to its nature of forgiveness and teachings. Many believed that Omarâs comments were a way of denying his true Arab and Muslim identity and roots, and aiming winning sentimentality and sympathy from American Jews, who are behind the decision making process in the cinema. The actor did not deny making such remarks with regards to his grandchildren and attempt to calm the storm of Anger. |
| Posted by:TS(vice girl) |
| #10 Jen sez, "But when I visited Egypt last in the late '80's, they claimed him as their "proud son." That reminds me of the wonderful Iranian actress (name escapes me) Oscar nominated for "House of Sand and Fog". She had to flee Iran to work and was then praised by the scum who chased her out for getting the nomination. |
| Posted by: JDB 2004-05-22 7:30:58 PM |
| #9 I met Omar Shariff a few years back here in Dallas--he was still handsome and completely charming. He was here to play championship bridge, which is his second career. Shariff stands for everything Islamists hate but need to embrace--films, success, working with Jews, capitalism and individualism, drinking booze, liberated women...and the buzz had it that he was gay. But when I visited Egypt last in the late '80's, they claimed him as their "proud son." |
| Posted by: Jen 2004-05-22 6:06:06 PM |
| #8 "But a religion is judged not by its best and brightest, but by its fanatical and most ignorant." That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. Why stop at religion? Why not hand out a class grade based on your LOWEST score? Why not judge YOUR entire life based on your biggest failure? why not judge a college by it's worst graduate? Why not judge an entire nation by it's worst citizen? And what's YOUR reason for not applying it to anything else but religion, other than to ensure that you don't have to acknowledge a Mother Theresa, as long as you can find a Paul Hill? And where do you put the 40 plus jailbirds I helped lead to Christ, and who now are leading honest lives? Where do you put the people who CLAIM to be Christians, but are as hopelessly ignorant of the details as you are, and thus live lives so contrary to its demands? Seems to me you're not enunciating some grand epistemological principle, but making an excuse to not think and find the facts. |
| Posted by: Ptah 2004-05-22 4:39:23 PM |
| #7 Robert-----Shhhhhhh! Heh heh |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2004-05-22 2:41:07 PM |
| #6 If LOTR had an Arab in it, the Arab Alley Ditch skid road boulevard freeway overpasss Street⢠would have gone nuts. Don't look too closely at the Haradrim. |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2004-05-22 2:30:16 PM |
| #5 Hildago is reason No. 734572 why Arabs seethe. If LOTR had an Arab in it, the Arab |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2004-05-22 1:13:23 PM |
| #4 Each religion has its own perilous failings. Mocmud never set forth any kind of principal on which you could base a "good" government. Therefore might makes right. Allah favors the winners. Both Islam and Judaism fail in their inability to curb their fanatics. Christians openly sneer at the ignorant and fanatical among themselves--they certainly don't see them as role models. But a religion is judged not by its best and brightest, but by its fanatical and most ignorant. Christianity with hierarchy is obnoxious, but without hierarchy fades away into ennui and superstition. "Christian agnosticism", or secular Christianity, has produced astounding advances, both socially and intellectually. This leads me to suspect that God likes to be left alone. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2004-05-22 12:43:22 PM |
| #3 Apparently Muslims don't understand the difference between fiction and reality. Of course, they haven't for centuries . . . Zpaz, they're just upset because he didn't take any infidels with him. |
| Posted by: The Doctor 2004-05-22 12:32:04 PM |
| #2 "The movie had many phrases that can be described as humiliating to Arabs and Muslims. The movie also shows Omar wondering about the reasons why women wear Hijab," Next to open sexuality, doubt seems to be what Muslims fear most. With our success, the West has introduced doubt into Muslim minds that the Qur'an is the literal truth. I suspect their hysterics are simple emotional cover-ups for that doubt. It strikes me that the Al Qaeda types are trying to rescue the acceptance of the Qur'an as literal truth by making the rest of us submit. If doubt is genuinely accepted as a given by the majority of Muslims, then they have lost. I think I will doubt their religion a little harder... and send more porn. Why is the Dome of the Rock holy in Islam? Could it be it has nothing to do with divine revelation and everything to do with fact that Jerusalem was a holy site in two other religions and Muslims needed to obliterate those religions in order to establish their religion as truth? Politics, such a sordid low business. I wonder, could it be that Muslims are in such a sorry condition because they have turned their backs on the Holy Trinity and chosen a false prophet? Anyone feeling doubtful? "At the end of the movie the Arab jockey commits suicide, which contradicts the beliefs of Islam." You don't say... |
| Posted by: Zpaz 2004-05-22 12:05:29 PM |
| #1 I understand that back in the '60's, Omar was a member of the Varsity Drinking Team with fellow actors Richard Harris and Peter O'Toole. They could put away the booze, attract the beautiful girls, and raise hell in a European version of the Rat Pack (Sinatra, et al.) I think Omar is cool but I have a rather stunted adolescent admiration for those types of things. |
| Posted by: JDB 2004-05-22 11:03:53 AM |