Saudi director Ali Saeed captivated audiences at the 46th Cairo International Film Festival with his feature-length documentary "Anti Cinema," a rich and deeply personal exploration of a generation born in the early 1980s, one that discovered cinema in a country where public movie theaters did not yet exist.
Relying heavily on the director’s intimate voiceover, the film begins with Saeed’s own childhood memories: discovering the magic of moving images and receiving a video camera from his father to document family celebrations.
From this personal entry point, Saeed expands the narrative to trace the major milestones that shaped the history of Saudi cinema.
The result is a visually and emotionally engaging chronicle, enriched by firsthand testimonies from pioneers who fought to keep cinema culture alive.
The incorporation of interviews alongside archival footage is seamless, creating an elegant and immersive storytelling flow.
Though the documentary runs for over 118 minutes, it remains consistently engaging. Saeed moves fluidly between historical events, cultural reflections, and personal anecdotes, uncovering stories that many viewers.
Through its candid exploration, the film sheds light on the obstacles that hindered the emergence of a formal film culture in Saudi Arabia, from restrictions on movie screenings to the difficulties of organizing festivals and supporting local filmmakers.
All of this is presented within the larger context of a nation now undergoing rapid transformation, one that must openly reckon with its past.
One of the film’s most compelling contributions is its correction of a long-standing misconception repeated in film encyclopedias, particularly by historian Georges Sadoul in his famous History of World Cinema, which claimed that the Arabian Peninsula remained untouched by cinema until the mid-20th century.
Saeed dismantles this narrative by presenting forgotten chapters of Saudi film history: documentary films produced by Aramco in the late 1940s and early 1950s for education and public awareness, early video recordings of the Kaaba and the Holy Mosque, and archival footage tied to King Abdulaziz.
The documentary also dives into the passion of Saudi cinephiles, revealing the creative and sometimes humorous ways they navigated cinema bans.
These stories of workaround and resistance lend the film an unexpected layer of fantasy-like irony, amplified by polished editing and a coherent structure that blends interviews, documents, and historical material into a single compelling narrative.
Despite its length, Against Cinema never feels heavy.
The film’s meticulous weaving of personal history, cultural commentary, and archival exploration creates a smooth, engaging experience that kept Cairo festival audiences fully immersed, and earned it significant praise during its premiere.
In the end, Ali Saeed delivers more than a documentary; he offers a reclamation of cultural memory, a love letter to a suppressed cinematic legacy, and a celebration of the power of storytelling even in the most unlikely circumstances.
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