The Nile Hilton Affair

Cairo 2011: The police here are riddled with corruption. Noredin (Fares Fares) is also one of the officers who look the other way for pay in illegal activities or provide special protection. When a famous singer is murdered in a luxury suite of the Nile Hilton Hotel and the trail leads to one of the most powerful businessmen in the country, the whole thing is supposed to be filed as a suicide. But even though Noredin doesn't usually take justice too seriously, Noredin investigates on his own after the seductive Gina (Hania Amar) provides him with important clues. As protests grow in the city around Tharir Square, keeping both politicians and police on edge, Noredin delves deeper and deeper into a web of conspiracies, corruption and violence.

Director Tarik Saleh, a Swede with Egyptian roots, has attempted to tie a political thriller to the events surrounding the Arab Spring with The Nile Hilton Affair. The story itself is based on true events, which have admittedly been dramaturgically altered for the film. At the center of the story is a policeman who at first glance doesn't seem to be a good man. He is corrupt and takes advantage of his position wherever possible. But the longer you follow him through the story, the clearer it becomes that he, emotionally jaded after the death of his wife, has actually just adapted to a thoroughly corrupt system.

His investigation into the murder of the young singer is thrillingly realised. When it becomes clear which circles the whole thing draws and who is involved in the machinations, it is quite gripping to watch. The fact that the political situation in the country is getting worse and worse, which the viewer only notices on the sidelines, creates a very special atmosphere. In addition, lead actor Fares Fares plays really great. And yet: the film just doesn't want to ignite.

In the end, the impression remains that much more suspense could have been extracted from the story and its true background. There are some scenes that aren't fleshed out well enough for the viewer to comprehend. As a result, the story kind of plods along at some not insignificant moments. It lacks an emotional element that helps keep you invested enough interest in such weaker moments to stay riveted to the end. The Nile Hilton affair is good, even very good in some sequences. But the thriller doesn't have to offer a real added value compared to the many top-class produced TV thrillers from the far north. And that's why the bottom line for buying a movie ticket is only one: With cutbacks recommendable!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp