“Austenland,” the 2013 rom-com directed by Jerusha Hess and based on the novel by Shannon Hale, is a delightful romantic comedy that combines satire, romance and a playful homage to the works of the very real Jane Austen.
The story follows Keri Russell as Jane Hayes, an Austen-obsessed 30-something American daydreamer who decides to put her foot down and take charge of her own fleeting life by spending her entire savings on a trip to Austenland, a cosplay, Regency-era themed resort in England.
The resort offers an immersive Austen experience, complete with period costumes, scripted interactions with actors and a strict adherence to the social customs of 19th-century England. No mobile phones allowed.
The title “Austenland” itself reflects the central idea of the movie — a place where the dream of living in a Jane Austen novel can come true.
Set in a picturesque English countryside, Austenland is a vibrant and exaggerated portrayal of the world Austen created in her novels. The resort’s staff, led by the no-nonsense Mrs Wattlesbrook (played by the excellent Jane Seymour), ensures that all guests live completely immersed in the world they have created, while keeping within the strict parameters she has set.
But soon the line between fiction and reality begins to blur when real romance begins to blossom. And the discovery of a stealthily hidden mobile phone nearly ruins the whole thing.
Russell delivers a great performance as Jane, a hopeless romantic who awkwardly navigates the increasingly absurd world of Austenland in search of love. One memorable line is: “I am single because, apparently, the only good men are fictional!”
Jennifer Coolidge, who most recently returned to the spotlight with the recent hit “White Lotus,” is both hilariously clueless and charming as her adopted namesake Miss Elizabeth Charming.
Of course, there is a brooding, Darcy-esque suitor in their midst, bringing a sense of romantic idealism to the film’s comedic heart.
At its core, Austenland is a commentary on the ways in which people seek fulfillment in unrealistic ideals. The film explores themes of identity and self-worth, questioning whether true love can exist in a semi-modern world constructed from fictional fantasies. Or not.
As Jane navigates her own journey, she confronts the expectations that she has carried with her from Austen’s novels and begins to realize that love — and life — are more complex than any fictional tale could attempt to depict.
The pacing is quite breezy and light yet somehow stumbles a bit — arguably, reminiscent of an Austen novel.
While “Austenland” probably won’t appear on any must-watch classic list anytime soon, it remains an enjoyable watch and very Austen-esque.
UAE lands starring role in Hollywood film ‘Now You See Me: Now You Don’t’
Third installment of popular franchise will be released in November
Updated 25 April 2025
Arab News
DUBAI: The UAE has landed a starring role in the upcoming Hollywood film “Now You See Me: Now You Don’t,” with scenes filmed in the capital city Abu Dhabi.
The production, which will be released in November, wrapped up a 13-day shoot at several of the capital’s landmark locations, according to the Creative Media Authority on Thursday.
The film, which is packed with high-stakes heist scenes, was shot at destinations including the Louvre Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Zayed Bridge, the Liwa Desert, Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, CLYMB, Yas Marina Circuit, W Abu Dhabi — Yas Island, and various city streets.
The third installment of the popular franchise, directed by US filmmaker Ruben Fleischer, brings back Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco, and Morgan Freeman in their previous roles, joined by an ensemble cast that includes Justice Smith, Dominic Sessa, Ariana Greenblatt, and Rosamund Pike.
The winner of the Best Feature Film at the 11th Saudi Film Festival, which concluded earlier this month, “My Driver & I” (Salma and Gamar), directed by Saudi Arabia’s own Ahd Kamel, is a poignant coming-of-age story set in 1980s and 1990s Jeddah.
The film follows Salma, raised as an only child in a villa. Her globe-trotting father (played by legendary Saudi hip-hop artist Qusai “Don Legend” Kheder) indulges her with stacks of music cassette tapes from his international travels. Salma’s Palestinian mother (Rana Alamuddin) initially appears overly-strict but a soft undercurrent eventually reveals itself.
The heart of the film lies in Salma’s bond with Gamar (Mustafa Shahata), a newly hired Sudanese driver and father to a one-year-old child back in Sudan. Though tasked with taking Salma to school, Gamar becomes her protector, confidant and quiet guide through life.
Salma is portrayed as a very young girl by Tarah Al-Hakeem and later, as a teenager, by Roula Dakheelallah.
Gamar, too, has a relationship with cassette tapes — but for a very different reason. His wife back home cannot read, so he sends her audio recordings filled with updates and declarations of love for her and their child. Despite the distance and longing, he makes the difficult decision to stay in Jeddah until Salma graduates high school, sacrificing his own time with his family in the process.
One might be reminded of the classic 1989 American film “Driving Miss Daisy,” which followed the decades-long relationship between an elderly white Southern woman and her Black driver in mid-20th-century Atlanta. But while parallels can be drawn in terms of companionship and class, “My Driver & I” is a distinctly Saudi story — rooted in a different era, place and dynamic.
Kamel has said in interviews that the film is inspired by her own relationship with her childhood driver.
As Salma matures, the innocence of her world begins to fray. Still in high school, a shy flirtation with a teen boy (played by pop star Mishaal Tamer) causes tension between her and Gamar.
While some parts of the story may seem stretched or lengthy, it feels like a road — meandering, unfolding in its own time.
Kamel is no stranger to the screen. Best known for her acting role in the BAFTA-nominated “Wadjda” (2012), Saudi Arabia’s first feature film, “My Driver & I” marks her directorial debut.
While “Wadjda” centered on a girl longing to ride a bicycle, this film replaces the bike with a car — and, at one point, even a jet ski. In both films, the story is rooted in a Saudi girl’s perspective.
Raised in Jeddah, Kamel moved to New York City for higher education; she studied law at Columbia University and then animation and communication at Parsons, and obtained a directing degree from New York Film Academy. It was while in the US that she learned of her childhood driver’s passing and began writing “My Driver & I” as a homage — to him, and to the city they shared.
Gamar, which translates to “moon,” can be seen as reflecting Salma’s ball of sunshine.
He does not just drive her from place to place, he shows her the road — both literal and emotional. And she provides the soundtrack.
Winners take to the stage as curtain falls on 11th Saudi Film Festival
Impressive showcase ends dazzling event
Updated 24 April 2025
Jasmine Bager
DHAHRAN: The 11th Saudi Film Festival, which was hosted at the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture, concluded with a dazzling showcase on Wednesday following a week of cinema-centric programming.
The celebration took place after the final films were screened, and featured a selfie-heavy red carpet at which Saudi fans stood waiting for their favorite stars to arrive.
In the feature film competition, ‘My Driver & I,’ directed by Ahd Kamel, took home the Golden Palm for Best Feature Film. (Supplied)
Just as on opening night seven days earlier, Saudi actors Aixa Kay and Khaled Saqer hosted. There were no musical numbers or performances this time around, just awards and heartfelt speeches.
The big winners were invited on stage to collect their Golden Palm Awards — which resembled film strips sprouted in the shape of a palm tree and drenched in gold — after each jury provided a short speech as to why the winner had been chosen.
The award for Best Feature Film was given to “My Driver & I,” directed by Ahd Kamel. It was collected by the film’s star — who played teenage Salma — Roula Dakheelallah.
The Golden Palm Award for Best Feature Film (GCC) went to the Iraqi film “Songs of Adam” by Oday Rasheed. The films “Hobal,” “Siwar,” and “Holes” each received special recognition from the jury for their cinematography.
Meshal Al-Mutairi received the Golden Palm for Best Acting.
“Mera, Mera, Mera” by Khalid Zaidan won the Golden Palm for Best Short Film.
The Abdullah Al-Mohaisen Award for a first film was presented to “Sharshura” (The Hearse) by Ahmed Alnasser, who shared with the audience that he was a volunteer at SFF in 2014 at the second edition, and that he would place his new award next to his baby who was born that morning.
The Golden Palm for Best Short Film (GCC) was awarded to “Delusion” by Issa Al-Subhi, with “The Last Dismissal” by Jawaher Alamri earning special recognition from the jury.
“Othman in the Vatican” by Yasir bin Ghaneem won the Golden Palm for Best Documentary Film, while the award in the GCC was awarded to “The Dark Side of Japan” by Omar Farooq.
Ahmed Al-Mulla, the festival’s director, said: “We are gathered once more for cinema at the 11th edition of the Saudi Film Festival.
“We arrived with stories and dreams in our hearts. In just a few short days we have listened to tales that were not only watched, but deeply felt.
“Each year you return to this space and fill it with warmth — with your hearts and with your creative spirit.
“You move through the rhythm of the festival as if it’s a language you’ve always spoken. We thank everyone — those behind the curtain, those who adjusted the lights, and those who stayed with us until the last shot. Thank you to those who chose to be here — cinema does not call to us in vain.”
Ameer Fakher Eldin: ‘I was cut off from my culture. Now I’m making films with all the Arab world’
The Syrian filmmaker’s ‘Yunan,’ backed by the Red Sea Fund, is the second in a trilogy about displacement and exile
Updated 24 April 2025
Iain Akerman
DUBAI: Four years ago, Syrian filmmaker Ameer Fakher Eldin set out to craft a cinematic trilogy about exile — not as an abstract theme, but as a visceral, lived reality: from being a stranger among your own people, to becoming a stranger among others, and ultimately, to imagining a life unhindered by the limitations of national borders.
The first chapter, “The Stranger,” introduced us to Adnan, an unlicensed doctor lingering in a liminal space in Syria’s occupied Golan Heights. The opening lines hinted at the trilogy’s ambition. Standing pensively by a window, Adnan is addressed by his off-screen wife, who lists the options before them: “France? Paris… they have delicious bread. Germany? Anywhere far from here.”
Ameer Fakher Eldin at the Amman International Film Festival in July 2022. (AFP)
The film, which Fakher Eldin wrote, directed, and edited, would go on to represent Palestine at the Academy Awards — a decision he describes as an “incredible gesture” and a “beautiful, warm embrace” from a fellow occupied people. “Perhaps it’s a different type of occupation (to the Golan Heights). We don’t have the daily clashes, but occupation still runs in the waters,” he says.
Now Germany has become the setting for his trilogy’s second chapter “Yunan.” Having premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in February, where it competed for the highest prize, it is currently touring the festival circuit, building on the critical momentum of “The Stranger.”
A still from ‘Yunan.’ (Courtesy of Red Balloon Film GmBH, Productions Microclimat Inc, Intramovies Srl)
“Yunan” explores the emotional journey of Munir (played by Lebanese actor Georges Khabbaz), a Syrian writer living in exile in Germany. Burdened by the psychological toll of displacement, he travels to the Halligen, a series of low-lying islands off the coast of Schleswig-Holstein, where he contemplates suicide. One of the director’s early inspirations was the suicide note of Stefan Zweig, a Jewish writer who fled Austria and Nazi persecution in the 1930s. Eventually settling in Brazil, he took his own life alongside his second wife, Lotte Altmann, having been left bereft by exile, the loss of his homeland, and an overwhelming sense of hopelessness.
“The character of Munir emerged from a deep exploration of the human condition,” says Fakher Eldin, who was born in Kyiv but grew up in the Golan Heights. “I wanted to explore this quiet battle that we face within ourselves. Since I come from the occupied Golan Heights, I grew up in exile without being forced to leave. I didn’t flee because of war or a national crisis — the border was displaced, leaving me displaced. I don’t know Syria. I can’t go to Syria. So I was left waiting for — or fantasizing about the idea of — a homeland.”
As the filmmaker points out, much has been written about the odyssey of being a refugee — the danger, the despair, the journey itself. But what of being displaced?
“The time has come for us to look at what happens after,” he says. “This is no less important. My approach was to try to anatomize the mind of the displaced person. I entered this world by connecting to the universal aspects of loss and disillusionment and the search for meaning.”
It was during the initial stages of exploring these themes that he came across the Halligen and the phenomenon known as ‘land unter’ (land under), when the islands are submerged by the sea. Only a handful of man-made mounds topped with farmhouses remain above the water, enabling life to continue after the sea has receded. Metaphorically, land under came to reflect the structure of Yunan – that of submersion, loss, and return.
“I went to this hallig for two years while writing, getting to know the people and the culture, and I heard, of course, about the flooding,” says Fakher Eldin, who has lived in Germany for the past four years. “I asked them: ‘When does this happen? Please tell me, because I want to be here.’” He was told it could occur once a year, 20 times a year, or not at all. Most likely, however, such an event would take place between January and March.
The team visited during those months but nothing happened. Fakher Eldin decided to use visual effects instead, working with a post-production studio in Canada to create the film’s flood scenes. Then, in October, they headed back to the island for a three-week shoot. On the fourth day, a strong wind began to batter the island.
“Not every wind makes a land under. It has to be strong enough, but also blowing in a certain direction, because not every wind moves the water with the tide. But that one was just right,” he says, calling the wind’s arrival “divine intervention.” He made a quick decision: he took a small team, a camera, and Khabbaz to one of the elevated farmhouses.
“I remember standing next to the oldest man in the house, an 85-year-old, who was learning into the wind in the classic style. I said to him, ‘Do you at least know from which direction the sea will come?’ I didn’t want to just shoot from the house, I wanted to get intimate with the water, because it’s a character in the film. I wanted people to see that it was coming.”
The speed of the event gave Fakher Eldin no time for preparation. “It’s not something you can think of before, because you haven’t experienced such a thing,” he explains. “We had 20 minutes because it was so fast. From the moment the water crossed the barrier of the shore until it reached four meters high, it felt like magic, but also incredibly dangerous. I had to direct in real time — that was a challenge. But everything you see in the film is real.”
“Yunan,” which received support from the Red Sea Fund and the Red Sea Souk, will have its Arab premiere at the Red Sea International Film Festival in December. It will then go on general release across the Arab world. Although Fakher Eldin is currently concentrating on “Yunan,” he has completed writing the third and final instalment, tentatively called “Nostalgia: A Tale in First Chapters.” The film will tell the story of a renowned Arab opera singer who suddenly loses his voice and returns to the Golan Heights to convalesce.
“This has brought me a lot of joy,” says Fakher Eldin of his Red Sea funding. “Especially with coming from the Golan Heights, where I was cut off from my culture. I can’t go to Syria, I can’t go to Lebanon, I can’t go anywhere in the Arab world. I’m exiled in my own home. But now I’m making films with all of the Arab world. It’s not only Saudi, it’s Jordan, Palestine, Qatar… It’s like all the Arab countries are part of my creation.”
Importantly, the director has refused Israeli funding, thereby safeguarding the identity of his films. That refusal is not just political but deeply personal — rooted in a lifelong resistance to imposed narratives and erasures.
“They will never say I’m Syrian. They will only say I’m a Druze filmmaker, which is something they do to distinguish Druze from Arab, which is total nonsense. But this is what happens in Israeli media and in daily life,” he says. “That’s how they like to separate. I refuse to live under an authority that wants to erase my identity.”
Saudi Film Festival honors decades-spanning career of Saudi veteran actor Ibrahim Alhasawi
Ibrahim Alhasawi: ‘We’re seeing a powerful emergence of Saudi cultural identity through film’
Updated 25 April 2025
Hind AlKhunaizi
DHAHRAN: “I felt an overwhelming sense of pride when I heard the news,” said Ibrahim Alhasawi, the Saudi veteran actor celebrated at this year’s Saudi Film Festival.
“Having witnessed the festival since its first edition in 2008, and being recognized alongside many fellow filmmakers I’ve worked with over the years, is truly an honor,” he told Arab News.
The 11th Saudi Film Festival, which concluded on April 23 at the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture in Dhahran, honored Alhasawi’s nearly four-decade career shaping Saudi cinema.
Organized by the Saudi Cinema Association in collaboration with Ithra and supported by the Saudi Film Commission, the festival was held under the theme “Stories Seen and Told,” with a focus on “Cinema of Identity” to highlight film’s role in expressing personal, cultural and national identity.
A cornerstone of Saudi cinema, Alhasawi began in community theater in the 1980s before gaining prominence in television and film, including as producer and director. His notable works include the iconic series “Tash Ma Tash” as well as recent performances in “Hajjan” and “Hobal.”
He spoke candidly about the industry’s growth, saying: “The change has been tremendous. Since the founding of the Saudi Film Commission, we’ve seen a clear rise in both the scale and quality of Saudi productions.”
His work is rooted in cultural storytelling. “Art without identity loses its soul,” he said. “We’re seeing a powerful emergence of Saudi cultural identity through film. With stories like ‘Hobal’ and ‘Hajjan,’ we are introducing audiences worldwide to the depth of our heritage.”
Alhasawi also highlighted the importance of representing the Kingdom’s regional diversity, noting how different areas of Saudi Arabia bring distinctive perspectives and traditions that enrich the national narrative.
The festival paid tribute to the actor with a commemorative book, “From Village Theatre to the Global Screen,” featuring photographs, reflections and testimonials about his journey.
He met aspiring filmmakers at festival book signings and discussions, cementing his role as a mentor.
Of his acting process, he said: “I approach each role by exploring the character’s physical presence, social background and psychological depth. These layers help bring the performance to life with sincerity and nuance.”
The festival showcased 68 films from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf, including eight narrative features and 21 shorts, with “Hobal,” directed by Abdulaziz Alshlahei, standing out for its themes of cultural identity and resilience.
Ithra’s venues hosted screenings, panels, workshops and red-carpet events, blending film with musical and artistic performances to underscore cinema’s place in Saudi cultural life.
By celebrating icons such as Alhasawi while amplifying new voices, the festival highlights Saudi cinema’s vibrant legacy and its growing global influence.
