Last week, I was lucky to attend a screening of the critically-acclaimed documentary The Square. The film, named for Cairo's Tahrir Square, captures pivotal moments in Egypt's revolution and modern history in an intelligent, emotional, and aesthetically beautiful way. Director Jehane Noujaim and her team began filming in early 2011, just before the protests that toppled the Mubarak regime, and they continued filming through June of this year -- because the situation in Egypt continues to evolve, they weren't sure when to stop rolling. In its very first frames, The Square made me feel nostalgic for Cairo, where I lived for three years before coming to D.C., and for my dear friends there. Whether or not you have a personal connection to Egypt, though, the film is a captivating must-see.
The Square will arrive in select U.S. theatres in January, so mark your 2014 calendars, please, and plan to see the film if it plays near you. Otherwise, you can request or organize a screening (Details appear when you hover over "Screenings" on the website.) or find it on Netflix, also beginning in January.
(Image by Noujaim Films via the Los Angeles Times.)
