him into putting on his wedding garment. Qinawi complies, then realizes he has donned a straitjacket. He struggles, but is taken away. Historical significance Cairo Station debuted in 1958. With the overthrow of the Egyptian monarchy in 1952 (see Cinema of Egypt), the ability of Youssef Chahine to tackle themes of the urban working class, gender-based violence and sexual repression is important to highlight as it demonstrates Chahine (and similar directors) ability to push the boundaries of Egyptian Cinema, something they would not be able to do when the film industry was nationalized in 1966. By intermixing film genres (specifically Italian Neorealism and Film Noir) Chahine was able to vividly portray Egyptian society as it was during the 1950s and in doing so provide Egyptian and international viewers a glimpse into Egypt's changing societal ideologies, and values in a post-revolutionary world. Cast Farid Shawqi as Abu Siri (أبو سريع 'Abū Sirīʿ) Hind Rostom as Hannuma (هنومة Hanūma) Youssef Chahine as Qinawi (قناوي Qināwī) Hassan el Baroudi as Madbouli (مدبولي Madbūlī) Abdel Aziz Khalil as Abu Gaber (أبو قبر 'Abū Qabr) Naima Wasfy (Wasfi) as Hallawatim (حلاوتي Ḥalāwatī) Said Khalil Abdel Ghani Nagdi Loutfi El Hakim Abdel Hamid Bodaoha F. El Demerdache Said El Araby Ahmed Abaza Hana Abdel Fattah Safia Sarwat Critical reception Upon its release in 1958, Cairo Station provoked outrage among Egyptian audiences, who were expecting "conventional melodramas and comedies that were staples of Egypt's early film industry." According to the same review, the film's treatment of suppressed sexuality and its adverse effect on Qinawi's mental health are both highlighted by Chahine's rendering of his "antihero", as well as by the fictional context, relating closely to social and psychological problems of a society marked by violent masculinity or the repression of workers' rights. Despite the film's initial lack of acceptance, a new generation of international film lovers discovered it in the 1970s, and in 2020, it was presented as part of a retrospective of Youssef Chahine's films on Netflix. In 2002, Cairo Station was called "the highlight of the Chahine season at the National Film Theatre in London", and on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, it received an overall score of 100%. See also Cinema of Egypt Top 100 Egyptian films List of submissions to the 31st Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film List of Egyptian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film References