Egyptian Maidens' movie review, Benten men Masr'

Challenges, obstacles, depression, and pain, these are the most important life experiences for Egyptian unmarried women as shown in the recent movie, Egyptian Maidens, ‘Benten men Masr’.

In a community in which women often pay the price, many girls find themselves obliged to compromise to find an opportunity to marry.

Searching for this opportunity at work, among her colleagues, and in marriage specialized offices, Hanan (Zena) gives an example of the positive one who tries to create a chance instead of cursing her conditions. However, she couldn’t make it, why?

This what the movie is about, the way of thinking of men and the whole community in Egypt.

In a very touchy scene, Hanan is lying in a gynaecologist clinic opening and closing her legs, in a very painful moment in her life physically and emotionally. She was literally asked by her fiancée to undergo a virginity test! To make it even worse, her fiancée didn’t appreciate the painful moment he put her through, he simply told her that even after the test proved she’s virgin, yet he cannot trust women!

This scene among other scenes throughout the movie, highlights new values emerging in the Egyptian community that had never been there before, values that always find an excuse for men with no vice versa.

Men can marry girls who are much younger than they are, men can have extramarital affairs because they’ll get unnoticed, at last they won’t undergo a virginity test.

Using a powerful and sad music the movie is asking for these girls’ rights, the right to have someone to care, someone to love, someone to make them able to have children. It expresses all the frustration they experience longing for this man.

Although the movie sounds bitter and sad, it touched upon cases of maidens of the middle class in a very honest and realistic way.

Looking forward to a similar one talking about challenges facing married women.