''Molasses'' ( ar, عسل إسود, Assal Eswed) is a 2010 Egyptian comedy film. The literal translation of the title is "Black Honey", relating to the bitter-sweet feelings that

Egyptians Egyptians ( arz, المَصرِيُون, translit=al-Maṣriyyūn, ; arz, المَصرِيِين, translit=al-Maṣriyyīn, ; cop, ⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ, remenkhēmi) are an ethnic group native to the Nile, Nile Valley in Egypt. Egyptian ...

feel towards living in their country.

Plot

Masry is an Egyptian who left his country when only 10 years old. He returns to Egypt 20 years later following the death of his father. Masry desires to get back in touch with his roots and to revive his nostalgic memories of how

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 Mediter ...

used to be. However, he quickly becomes disenchanted upon experiencing first hand the chaos that Egypt has descended into. He learns the hard way that

citizens have very few rights and that they live a very tough life where foreigners are often treated with more respect than

themselves. Despite the fact that this production discusses very serious issues, the film is nonetheless a mix of

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

and light drama and serves as a poignant reminder of our current times.

Summary

Masry Sayed El-Araby is an Egyptian American photographer who returns to

after twenty years abroad, having left

twenty years ago when he and his family immigrated to

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. After arriving he goes through a series of events that led him to being conned, beaten by protestors and losing his American passport. In a fit of rage, he decides to throw away his Egyptian passport as well, which leaves him stranded in the country until he can get all of his documents back. He then decides to go back to his father's old apartment and live there after being kicked out of the hotel he is staying at. Masry is reunited with his neighbour and childhood friend Said and his family, where he helps him by fixing up his father's old apartment and inviting him to live with him and his family while it gets repaired. Masry experiences the typical activities that

endure to get his life in order and to get his American passport back so he can back to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. living with Said, Masry experiences the delights of the Egyptian culture that has been a part of him that has been lacking in his life since he left

in his youth. After getting his life in order, he says goodbye to all of the companions he had met during his stay in

and boards a plane to leave

. During the take-off, he realizes that his stay has changed him and decides to stay in

Cast

Ahmed Helmy Ahmed Muhammad Helmy Abdel Rahman Awwad ( ar, أحمد محمد حلمي عبد الرحمن عواد; born November 19, 1969) is an Egyptian actor, comedian, film producer, TV host and diplomat. He started his career in 1993 on the Egyptian sate ...

as Masry Sayed El-Araby * Edward as Said *

Lotfy Labib Lotfy Labib (Arabic: لطفي لبيب, born 18 August 1938) is an Egyptian stage, television and film actor. He also worked as an announcer at one point. Despite having graduated from the Institute of Theatrical Arts in 1970, Labib's career was d ...

as Radi * Enaam Salousa as Saeed's Mother *

Ahmed Rateb Ahmed Rateb ( ar, أحمد راتب‎; 23 January 1949 – 14 December 2016) was an Egyptian actor. He appeared in more than sixty films. Selected filmography See also *Cinema of Egypt *Lists of Egyptian films The following is a list of Eg ...

as Officer * Emy Samir Ghanem as Mervat *

Dina Talaat Dina Tala'at Sayed Muhammad ( ar, دينا طلعت سيد محمد, ; born March 27, 1964) is an Egyptian belly dancer and actress. She was named as the "Last Egyptian Dancer" by the American magazine ''Newsweek''. She has a master's degree in P ...

Reception

Overall reception has been positive, with critics praising the depiction of

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

and its residents from the point of view of an Egyptian living outside of

. Some critics have less favourable reviews, citing that Assal Eswed clings to the nationalistic tendencies of

in order to develop a relatable character to average

References

External links

{{IMDb title, 2210441 2010 films 2010s Arabic-language films Films set in Egypt 2010 black comedy films 2010 comedy films Egyptian black comedy films