Baba Amin

Chahine’s directorial debut feature is a prime example of the Egyptian studio films of the time: a fantastical comedy about the head of a family who passes on but returns to observe the transformation of his wife and daughter in the wake of his death. This straightforward entertainment suggests little of Chahine’s subsequent sociopolitical commentary but displays a palpable visual virtuosity and a leaning for hybrid forms of melodrama. An atypical debut by a skillful craftsman trying to find his voice, Daddy Amin is the work of a young Egyptian director attempting to strike a balance between his American film education and Egyptian film traditions. (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)