Ma' Sabq El Esrar

Cairo TV & DVD

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Abeer Sabry, Ghada Abdel Razek, Rogina, Maged El Masry

Starring

Drama

Genre

Out now

In Cinemas

Mohammed Samy

Director

Ayman Salama

Writer

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Ma’ Sabq El Esrar: Melodramatic Crack for Women

Published On: 13/08/2012

Set in a version of Cairo where a million pounds are treated like change, lawyers go to court in white, mid-thigh skirt suits and middle aged men have shoulder length, Farrah Fawcett hair, Ma’ Sabq El Esrar is actually an entertaining melodrama - and we mean that in a good way. It’s a classic soap opera only dressed up and prettied to resemble the Turkish versions that Egyptian TV fanatic are besotted with; the interiors are gorgeous, the clothes look straight out of a fashion magazine and everything that can possibly go wrong, does.

Ghada Abdel Razek, in a surprising turn, stars as Fareeda; a big time lawyer and mother of three with an amazing dressing room and a wardrobe to match. When her scumbag husband discovers that she’d been cheating on him with her lover Ziad (El Masry), he proceeds to beat her to a bloody pulp - only the first of a series of physical altercations on the show that are beyond horrendous to watch.

On the plus side though, being rid of her husband presents one less obstacle to her living in happiness with her new beau. But for that to happen, she first has to deal with her fresh out of rehab son, Ahmad (Malek), her daughter Salma (El Gheity) who’s in love with a guy out to destroy both her and her family and her youngest, Karim, a diabetic who longs to eat chocolate and ice cream like the other kids. Then of course there are all the bigwigs against whom she wages war against in court and who don’t harbour much love for her.

Abdel Razek is great in a role that shows that she has something other to her repertoire than her sex appeal. She manages to portray a character that pines over a guy without seeming desperate, a mother with a genuinely convincing relationship with her kids and is a fierce lawyer, boss and friend.

Sabry, who plays her best friend and co-worker, proves to be a strong match for Abdel Razek, while Rogina who plays a scheming hooker is mesmerising. El Masry, however, is fighting a losing battle. Firstly, he has to overcome his hairstyle and the resemblance it bears to those of his Turkish counterparts and secondly, his character is the kind that’s just too perfect and caring to be interesting.

Ma’ Sabq El Esrar’s is very female oriented and it’s the type of show that you could watch with your mum or grandma and each would find it appealing on some level - such is the power of a well rounded female character. You just have to keep in mind that the show isn’t exactly striving for realism and is instead portraying a style of life that is so farfetched, it may as well be fantasy.

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Ma’ Sabq El Esrar: Melodramatic Crack for Women

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