In less than 48 hours since its launch, Instagram’s newly created platform ‘Threads’ managed to surpass over 70 million sign-ups. Seemingly integrating itself into our usage overnight, ‘Threads’ — which is built for sharing text updates and joining public conversations — carved its place in the social media world. The allure of the platform and its newness has managed to attract millions of users —- showcasing how easy it is for the mass to jump on the bandwagon of social media trends.
The influence of social media has long been addressed — sometimes full of praise and sometimes full of censure — which is what Egyptian blockbuster Beit Al-Rouby (House of Rouby) discusses. The film, albeit humorous at times, is a powerful depiction of the potential of social media to disrupt lives.
Directed by Peter Mimi, the film stars Karim Abdel Aziz, Karim Mahmoud Abdel Aziz, Nour, and Tara Emad. Beit Al-Rouby garnered EGP 63 million (USD 2 million) in less than two weeks, and ousted Hollywood film ‘The Flash’ from the top spot at Saudi Arabia’s box office.
In a compelling portrayal of the dire consequences of social media and cancel culture, Ibrahim (played by Karim Abdel Aziz) moves away with his family from the hustle and bustle of Cairo to a remote place secluded from city life — and the watchful eyes of its residents. After a turn of events that lead Ibrahim to go back to Cairo for three days, the family is exposed to situations that force them to come face to face with the past they ran away from.
In a moment of realization, I found myself aimlessly scrolling through Instagram, during a film that talks and stresses on the looming effects of social media addiction. If this is the case for you as well — then Beit Al-Rouby is worth the watch.
Note: Stop reading here if you want to avoid spoilers. The below discusses key plot points of the film.
The Story: a Powerful Message, a Heart-Wrenching Reality
In the middle of the mountains — a place sheltered from the busyness of Cairo’s city life — lives Ibrahim, with his wife Iman (played by Nour), and two children. They lead a very simple life where they fish, huddle around camp-fires, and spend meaningful time together. To the world, they are a united front, against all odds and challenges — which is what led them to leave their lives in Cairo behind seven years ago.
They live a life against the flow, not just away from Cairo, but also away from social media. They don’t use their phones often, and their children are not allowed to be on TikTok and other social media channels that have become normal to be on at their age.
The reason as to why they left Cairo and never looked back is revealed later in the film, but when Ihab (played by Karim Mahmoud Abdel Aziz), Ibrahim’s brother, urges him to go back to Cairo to finish needed paperwork, Ibrahim agrees to go alone. However, Iman pressures him to take her and the kids with him, because she feels like their seclusion from the outside world might be dangerous to the kids in the long run.
Used to the quietness and stillness of the lives they lead, Cairo’s tumult is almost foreign to the family. Within the first hours they spent in Cairo’s traffic, Ibrahim is agitated — as he should be — and his patience runs low. After spending time in Cairo with all of its buysness and seeing how addicted Ihab and his wife Bahira, a social media blogger (played by Tara Emad), are to their phones, Ibrahim is even more sure he made the right decision to flee, though his wife Iman seems to think otherwise.
The audience later finds out that the reason the family fled the city was due to a viral video of Iman that circulated all over social media. Before she fled the city, Iman was a practicing surgeon, and was accused of killing a man’s pregnant wife during surgery. The man, consumed by anger and grief, took his frustration to social media. In the span of a couple of days, this was all the city spoke about. The video went viral, gaining millions of views, and people relentlessly called her a murderer.
Eventually, she lost her job, and everywhere she went, Iman would be harassed for what she allegedly did. She never got the chance to prove her innocence or divulge what actually happened in the operation room. Since Iman wasn’t given any grace or the chance to explain herself, the alternate decision was to leave the city, and let the story die out on its own.
The intensity of the issue, to a large degree, makes their decision to leave and Ibrahim’s hostility towards social media understandable. He saw what it did to his family, the emotional and mental turmoil it brought, and he wanted to protect the family.
They live a life against the flow, not just away from Cairo, but also away from social media. They don’t use their phones often, and their children are not allowed to be on TikTok and other social media channels that have become normal to be on at their age.
The reason as to why they left Cairo and never looked back is revealed later in the film, but when Ihab (played by Karim Mahmoud Abdel Aziz), Ibrahim’s brother, urges him to go back to Cairo to finish needed paperwork, Ibrahim agrees to go alone. However, Iman pressures him to take her and the kids with him, because she feels like their seclusion from the outside world might be dangerous to the kids in the long run.
Used to the quietness and stillness of the lives they lead, Cairo’s tumult is almost foreign to the family. Within the first hours they spent in Cairo’s traffic, Ibrahim is agitated — as he should be — and his patience runs low. After spending time in Cairo with all of its buysness and seeing how addicted Ihab and his wife Bahira, a social media blogger (played by Tara Emad), are to their phones, Ibrahim is even more sure he made the right decision to flee, though his wife Iman seems to think otherwise.
The audience later finds out that the reason the family fled the city was due to a viral video of Iman that circulated all over social media. Before she fled the city, Iman was a practicing surgeon, and was accused of killing a man’s pregnant wife during surgery. The man, consumed by anger and grief, took his frustration to social media. In the span of a couple of days, this was all the city spoke about. The video went viral, gaining millions of views, and people relentlessly called her a murderer.
Eventually, she lost her job, and everywhere she went, Iman would be harassed for what she allegedly did. She never got the chance to prove her innocence or divulge what actually happened in the operation room. Since Iman wasn’t given any grace or the chance to explain herself, the alternate decision was to leave the city, and let the story die out on its own.
The intensity of the issue, to a large degree, makes their decision to leave and Ibrahim’s hostility towards social media understandable. He saw what it did to his family, the emotional and mental turmoil it brought, and he wanted to protect the family.
One day during their visit to Cairo, Ibrahim gets into a heated argument about social media and its negative impact while Bahira was live streaming on her Instagram account — and his life is changed forever after the video circulated and gained the attention of millions of viewers.
Still, Ibrahim was not interested in the praise he was getting for what he had said; he was still keen on standing his ground against social media. Yet, in a fleeting moment, Ibrahim found himself starting to get addicted to the attention, the likes and comments, and the praise; he became the face of advertisements, blogs, and more. Eventually, instead of condemning how social media is addictive, he became an addict himself, alongside his children and Iman.
However, this didn’t last long. After Iman had regained her job as a surgeon and Ibrahim became a public figure, the video of Iman ‘killing’ the woman resurfaced on social media. Millions of people instantly recognized what had happened before, and overnight, instead of praising Ibrahim, they turned against him — back to square one, once again. He later found out that the agency that was managing him leaked the video in order to raise Ibrahim’s views and reach.
The Watching Experience: 30 Percent Laughs, 70 Percent Thought-Provoking
As I was watching the film — one about how social media is powerful and addictive — I found myself scrolling through Instagram while the film was going on. It instantly dawned on me, almost as an epiphany, how powerful Beit Al-Rouby is. Instead of living in the moment and enjoying my time out, I found myself consumed in what others are doing, their BeReals, their Instagram stories, and their tweets.
In my opinion, Beit Al-Rouby stands as one of the best films that emerged in the Arab world in recent years. It is not only a film that carries a powerful message, it is also strikingly funny with punchlines that serve as comedic relief amidst the drama.
For others though, it is easy to understand why the film might feel like it’s stressful, possibly because it dragged on for too long. Although it was entertaining, there were times throughout the film that felt unnecessarily long, like the wedding scene.
However, that doesn’t take away from the on-screen chemistry between Karim and Karim. Throughout the film, the on-screen brothers felt like real-life brothers, depicting a genuine connection guaranteed to put a smile on the audience’s faces.
Overall, Beit Al-Rouby is a must-watch film, especially in a social-media driven world. It sheds light on issues that many people deal with, whether it is the dire effects of cancel culture or the looming consequences of social media addiction. It is personal, poignant, and brings a refreshing reminder to look up from our phones.
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