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Patricia Clarkson, Alexander Siddig, Elena Anaya, Amina Annabi, Tom McCamus ... see more see more... , Mona Hala , Mohamed Abdel Fattah , Hossam Abdulla , Nabil Shazli , Fadia Nadda , Ahmed Ghareeb Hanafi , Mohamoud El Gazar , Roanne Bell , Andrew Cullen , Katie Sherif , Michelle Power , Sarah Farouk Ahmed , Abdullah Ibrahim , Ibramo Wafik Aboul , Seoud , Magdy Hafez , Vincenzo , Nagham Osman , Ahmed El Ashry , Magda Thabet , Robert Pandini , Mariam Mikiwi , Ahmed Abu Seda , Sherif Attira , Khouloud Kamel , Mohamed Shahin , Heba Hammad , Esraa Atef-El Shenawy , Ibrahim Salah , Amr Abul Nasr , Cosima , Uta , Nader Basyouni , Radi Ali Ahmed , Tarek Hariri , Miso Kontrec , Roee Sharon , Eman El Nagar , Abdel Hameed El Belkassy , Gigi , Mariam Aboul Magd , Hesham Saleh , Mohamed Waleed , Wagif , Hesham Abou El Magd , Daniel Iron

Juliette (Patricia Clarkson), a magazine editor, travels to Cairo to meet her husband, Mark (Tom McCamus), a UN official working in Gaza, for a three week vacation. When he is unavoidably delayed, he ... read more read more...sends his friend Tareq (Alexander Siddig), who had been his security officer for many years, to escort her throughout the beautiful and exotic city. The last thing anyone expects is that they will fall in love. Cairo Time is a love letter to a city intertwined with a love story about a woman. It began when Syrian-Canadian writer/director Ruba Nadda first visited Cairo with her family many years ago. Returning a decade ago with one of her sisters, (and no longer under the protective eye of her father) they had memorable adventures. "The city was beautiful and the people were beautiful," Nadda recalled. Having lived in Damascus, and subsequently traveled the world, Nadda never forgot the grandeur and the chaos of this ancient city that was originally settled in Paleolithic times. Sitting at the border of what was once Upper and Lower Egypt, the area that was to become the metropolis of Cairo has played host to the Greeks, Romans, Crusaders, the Ottomans, Napoleon, and the British and is now one of the most densely populated cities in the world. "I remember the city being alive. It's gritty and historical and seething with humanity and I just had to capture it on screen." Truly, a journey through Cairo is a journey through time and it awakens your soul. It was during Nadda's many trips to international film festivals with her 14 short films and her previous feature, Sabah, that she came to appreciate the feelings of introspection and melancholy that traveling alone engenders. From these experiences came Cairo Time, something Nadda deems a "real love story, but one that is very un-West because to me the West is about acquiring, accomplishing, deadlines and running, running, running. The central character, Juliette, is suddenly forced to slow down and move on Cairo time." This film has a West-meets-East quality to the unexpected, unrequited love between an Arab man and a North American woman. It's also a throw to old style, classic films reminiscent of the restrained, emotional tension in the work of Jane Austen. Juliette is a woman who married young and still ardently loves her husband, Mark, who works abroad. Their children have grown up and moved away. Life, doing what it usually does to a marriage, has replaced their hopes and dreams with accomplishment and responsibilities. In the back of her head, Juliette had thought that sooner or later, she and her husband would have time for each other, which was the reason for her trip to Cairo. "I love this woman," explained Nadda. "She is quiet. And she has a sadness that's just under the surface which comes from a lifetime of being by herself a lot because she's been stood up by a husband whose work has often taken priority." Unable to meet Juliette when she lands, but knowing that she is an independent woman who is likely to head off on her own, Mark asks Tareq to care for her. For years, Mark had trusted Tareq with his own life, so it made sense to extend that trust to Juliette's wellbeing. Once at the hotel, Juliette is alone again. Unwilling to wait quietly for her husband's arrival, every effort she makes to venture out on her own is rebuffed. Cairo is not a gentle city. With a population of 17 million, the noise is unbearable. The heat, mixed with dust, is oppressive. Traffic does not adhere to lanes or stop lights. And women, particularly foreigners, do not easily move about in public alone. Quickly, Juliette learns that the simple activities of everyday living in Canada, like walking across the street, become a test of wills in Cairo. And so she turns to Tareq who shows her first, Cairo, and then herself. -- (C) Official Site

Flixster Users

59% liked it

4,166 ratings

Critics

82% liked it

76 critics

PG, 1 hr. 28 min.

Directed by: Ruba Nadda

Release Date: August 6, 2010

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DVD Release Date: November 30, 2010

Stats: 377 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (377)

  • moonrivers
    April 24, 2012
    moonrivers
    Fancy a little trip abroad? You could do worst than this sweet gem about an American woman who gets to see Cairo through the eyes of the people who live there. At first I thought it moved slowly. By the time I realised that, no, I was watching too fast, it was over and, like a... read moreny good vacation, over too quickly. The leads submit intelligent, nuanced, adult performances and the experience should resonate for some time. And then you go to the Pyramids.
  • itsjustme2004
    September 5, 2011
    itsjustme2004
    Nice movie. Nothing too exciting.
  • Julie
    November 22, 2010
    Julie
    A beautiful film, it unfolds slowly and with great care. Patricia Clarkson projects a natural ease that only looks easy to achieve.
  • gator681
    August 22, 2010
    gator681
    "Cairo Time" is a quietly winning and beautifully photgraphed film with occasional obvious moments of direction. It starts with Juliette(Patricia Clarkson) arriving in Cairo, disappointed to find her husband, Mark, a United Nations official, is stuck in Gaza for the time being. ... read more She is instead met by Tareq(Alexander Siddig), Mark's longtime associate who has retired to run his father's coffee shop. They are not out of the airport before they meet Yasmine(Amina Annabi), an old friend of Tareq's, who invites them to a wedding. Left to her own devices, Juliette wanders the city and the movie uses her experiences, both good and bad, to explore the beautiful city and its relation to the West.(Surprisingly, the only other movie I can think of that was filmed in Cairo was "The Spy who Loved Me.") I had never realized the pyramids are so close to the city and the White Desert is particularly breathtaking. Interlinked with these highlights is the inability of Juliette to walk alone without being harassed and almost being run over in the street. It is ironic that in such a part of the world where women are expected to have a submissive role, she is experiencing freedom for the first time. Almogst the contingent at the embassy, there are suggestions to fix the city, changing things they do not understand, to make it more tourist friendly but wouldn't that rob Cairo of whatever makes it so unique in the first place? On a far more benign level, there is Mark's work in Gaza and the question if he is achieving anything worthwhile amid Juliette's concerns. Maybe all they need is a little faith.
  • fb796967648
    July 13, 2010
    fb796967648
    Where you fall on the scale of enjoyment for this slender little mood piece about two dewy eyed souls drifting towards (or away) from each other will probaby depend on how much you find your fingers drifting towards the Travel Channel on your remote while watching TV in the middl... read moree of the night. Because this flick is as much a travelogue set in Cairo as it is anything else; probably much more so. Exploring every corner of the city while getting to know each other, stranded traveler Patricia Clarkson finds herself getting all goopy with her guide, Alexander Siddig. They are both, of course, quite swell here, but they're filling in a lot of gaps in the not-quite-there screenplay. Yes, yes, I get it. It's elliptical. I know, I know. They can't say what they're really feeling. But shouldn't their NOT saying be more interested than the pretty locales they're not saying the stuff in? Like I said, how you answer that question will dictate what you'll think. I know how I'd answer it...
  • SC007
    September 18, 2011
    SC007
    The performances of Alexander Siddig and Patricia Clarkson are the best reason to watch the film. They shine on screen and have a great on screen chemistry in the film. The film kind of reminded me of movies like Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, Bridges of Madison County, One Day, ... read moreand A Passage to India. The cinematography was really good in the film. The pacing was off though. I do recommend the film cause of the performances of Clarkson and Siddig.
  • xxdebxx
    May 19, 2011
    xxdebxx
    Plot: Patricia Clarkson (Joan) plays the wife of a U.N. worker who comes to Egypt with the anticipation that her husband will be there to greet her. Unfortunately her husband is unable to break away from the conflict of his work to join his wife and so she is left alone. He sends... read more instead his close friend. Alexander Siddig (Tariq) to meet her and Tariq becomes her guide and her friend.

    To some extent the movie is about a woman traveling alone in an Islamic country, her own vulnerability in the face of on-street harassment as a white woman in an Egyptian world, the subtle development of a friendship between two temporarily lonely persons mixed in with an exotic environment and the cultural differences that both attract her and some which threaten her. Will this friendship lead to something more? Watch it to find out.
  • fb20312798
    December 3, 2010
    fb20312798
    Its nice to see a middle age romance be told from a mature realistic perspective with mature realistic characters.
  • Nutterjr
    May 20, 2010
    Nutterjr
    Cairo is a city full of diversity, full of culture, full of life...Clarkson and Siddig as well as the photography are great but the story did not sweep me off my feet. It is a movie I would have preferred to watch with my baby in my arms.
  • ileo
    February 12, 2011
    ileo
    A wonderfully, and intriguing, movie directed by Ruba Nadda (whom also directed "Sabah: A Love Story") follows the blossoming friendship, and love, between Juliette and Tareq. As Juliette arrives in Cairo, she receives news that her husband Mark will be delayed. In his stead, s... read morehe meets Tareq (Mark's reliant Security Officer) at the airport. He shows her the scenery of the city, and entertains her, while awaiting her husband's arrival. As she grows weary and lonely, Juliette and Tareq's friendship develops into love. Breathtaking scenery. Beautiful music.
    Patricia Clarkson, Alexander Siddig, Amina Annabi, Elena Anaya, and Tom McCamus stars. Definitely worthy!

View All Cairo Time Reviews

Critic Reviews

Peter Rainer
January 3, 2011
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor

The lovely twilit moments in this movie stay with one, and that summoning them up in your mind is like slowing down time. Full Review

David Lewis
August 27, 2010
David Lewis, San Francisco Chronicle

Confirms two things that hardly need confirming: The Egyptian capital is a breathtaking metropolis, and Patricia Clarkson is one of the best actors in the world. Full Review

Rob Nelson
August 26, 2010
Rob Nelson, Minneapolis Star Tribune

Cairo Time proves hard to resist, the film's familiarity gradually giving way to a playfulness that feels new to the impossible-love subset of bourgeois melodrama. Full Review

Steven Rea
August 26, 2010
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

Cairo Time: Take the time to see it. Full Review

David Lewis
August 20, 2010
David Lewis, Houston Chronicle

This is a poetic, romantic, emotionally complex film that sneaks up on you, particularly in its final scenes. Full Review

Ann Hornaday
August 20, 2010
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post

Clarkson proves what her fans have known forever: She's ready for the spotlight. With luck she'll stay there for a while. Full Review

Wesley Morris
August 19, 2010
Wesley Morris, Boston Globe

The movie isn't sure what, politically or even romantically, it's about. Full Review

A.O. Scott
August 6, 2010
A.O. Scott, New York Times

If Cairo Time does not amount to much, it does evoke a wistful state of feeling and a complicated city with enough skill and sensitivity that you wish it had dared more. Full Review

Stephen Whitty
August 6, 2010
Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger

It's as refreshing as a glass of mint tea. Full Review

Lou Lumenick
August 6, 2010
Lou Lumenick, New York Post

Cairo Time earns some indulgence for a pace that Westerners may find languid. Full Review

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