Follow Christiane on social media:

On Twitter + Facebook + Instagram Amanpour producers on Twitter

What time is Amanpour on CNN?

Check showtimes to see when Amanpour is on CNN where you are. Or watch online.

Check showtimes to see when Amanpour is on CNN where you are. Or watch online.

Removing the black and white from Egyptian struggle

October 23rd, 2013
08:45 AM ET

By Mick Krever, CNN

To read the headlines, Egypt since the ousting of President Mubarak two-and-a-half years ago has been in a hopeless state of constant tumult, divided between Islamists and secularists, the government and the opposition.

A new documentary – “The Square,” a reference to the now-famous Tahrir Square – tries to get beyond that and tell the street-level story of the activists on all sides who have been fighting for change.

“We've been filming in the square – myself and a team of talented filmmakers – for the past three years,” Filmmaker Jehane Noujaim told CNN’s Hala Gorani, in for Christiane Amanpour, on Tuesday.

“There has been a separation and a division,” Noujaim said. “But I think we do have to remember that we have to avoid getting stuck in these binaries, this conversation of it's either the Muslim Brotherhood or the military.”

“What our characters stand for, even our Muslim Brotherhood character, is the fight for a social movement, a change,” she told Gorani. “And it's a founding period in Egypt and we need to look at it that way.”

The film captures the complexity of Tahrir: The army that says it will sacrifice its own blood before firing on protestors, and the army that fires on protestors; the kinship between all different kinds of protestors in Tahrir, and the mass crowds calling for the ouster of President Mohamed Morsy.

“I think it's a very dark time right now,” Noujaim said. “But we've all seen dark times before. Six months after Mubarak stepped down, protesters were being run over by tanks; and people rose up from that again.”

“Nobody ever sees the Martin Luther King or the Gandhi when they've lost everything and when they feel like they've lost,” she said.

Often by necessity, Noujaim acknowledged to Gorani, the news media overly simplifies the Egyptian story.

“And I think that is where the power of a film like this can come in,” she said, “because you can actually understand the complexities of what these characters have dealt with over the past two and a half years.”

All of the characters in her film, she told Amanpour, would say that the “revolution will continue,” and that their efforts thus far had not been in vain.

“I don't think that anybody can take away what happened in January of 2011,” Noujaim said. “A fear was removed and people decided that they were going to reclaim their futures.”


Filed under:  Egypt • Latest Episode
soundoff (27 Responses)
  1. ashok

    One feels deeply for the Egyptian people. The army should not steal their revolution from them. Egyptians will take time to make their democracy work, but going back in time is not an option.

    October 23, 2013 at 4:16 pm | Reply
  2. Wes Waltersdorf

    I discovered your site site on google and appearance a couple of your early posts. Preserve on the excellent operate. I merely extra up your Rss to my MSN News Reader. Looking for forward to reading a lot more on your part later on!…

    http://6dollarmillion.xyz

    December 20, 2020 at 7:08 pm | Reply
  3. Jerrell Derbyshire

    https://www.electricpercolatorcoffeepot.com/10-top-coffee-bloggers/

    January 28, 2021 at 10:12 pm | Reply
  4. Connie Bidon

    I like this blog so much, saved to fav. "American soldiers must be turned into lambs and eating them is tolerated." by Muammar Qaddafi.

    https://www.electricpercolatorcoffeepot.com/10-top-coffee-bloggers/

    March 4, 2021 at 10:09 am | Reply
  5. Wayne Gutrerrez

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is essentially a online game where you can do anything you want. sl is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you want to see more you can see these sl websites and blogs

    http://rumblingstrips.blogspot.com/2007/03/

    May 11, 2021 at 9:45 am | Reply
  6. Roger Kearby

    This was great! I would like you to clean up all this spam though

    https://www.linkedin.com/in/yusuf-hanafy-82493b183

    May 12, 2021 at 6:05 am | Reply
  7. Cortez Dubicki

    I don't know about you all but I am obsessed with airplanes. I had a friend in highschool that loves airplanes, so here are some airplane related stuff I don't know about you guys but I love airplanes. I had a friend in highschool that loved airplanes, so here are some airplane related stuff https://www.airlinereporter.com/2010/09/the-great-service-of-flying-still-exists-in-first-class/

    http://prlog.ru/analysis/futureofflightfoundation.org

    May 16, 2021 at 7:00 pm | Reply
  8. Christie Shallenberger

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is basically a game where you can do anything you want. SL is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you would like to see more you can see these sl websites and blogs

    http://everydayliteracies.blogspot.com/2017/04/spanish-language-edition-of-of-new.html?showComment=1529951902859

    May 17, 2021 at 9:08 am | Reply
  9. Hui Whitham

    I don't know about you people but I love airplanes. I have a friend in highschool that loves airplanes, so here are some airplane related stuff I don't know about you guys but I love airplanes. I had a friend in highschool that loved airplanes, so here are some airplane related stuff https://www.airlinereporter.com/2009/07/will-super-sonic-transport-make-a-comeback/

    http://urlm.co/g/c/f/163873

    May 18, 2021 at 4:19 am | Reply
  10. Alda Kekahuna

    I don't know about you all but I infatuated with airplanes. I have a friend in highschool that loved airplanes, so here are some airplane related stuff I don't know about you guys but I love airplanes. I had a friend in highschool that loved airplanes, so here are some airplane related stuff https://www.airlinereporter.com/2009/07/united-airlines-completes-10000th-polar-flight/

    http://prlog.ru/analysis/futureofflightfoundation.org

    May 19, 2021 at 6:09 am | Reply
  11. Shay Skehan

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is basically a online game where you can do anything you want. sl is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you would like to see more you can see these sl authors and blogs

    http://everydayliteracies.blogspot.com/2014/08/new-book-in-our-series-youth-community.html?showComment=1541518937963

    May 20, 2021 at 5:18 am | Reply
  12. Loraine Liebenow

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is essentially a online game where you can do anything you want. Second life is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you want to see more you can see these second life websites and blogs

    http://everydayliteracies.blogspot.com/2018/05/border-crossers.html?showComment=1537659938527

    May 21, 2021 at 3:33 am | Reply
  13. Warren Gartz

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is basically a video game where you can do anything you want. SL is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you want to see more you can see these sl websites and blogs

    http://everydayliteracies.blogspot.com/2014/05/imagination-wanted-mobile-devices-in.html?showComment=1552285220656

    May 23, 2021 at 5:19 am | Reply
  14. Marcelo Thomen

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is essentially a game where you can do anything you want. sl is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you would like to see more you can see these sl websites and blogs

    http://myvedana.blogspot.com/2009/06/more-immediate.html?showComment=1449805673865&m=0

    May 28, 2021 at 6:07 am | Reply
  15. Adele Mellgren

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is essentially a game where you can do anything you want. SL is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you would like to see more you can see these second life authors and blogs

    http://everydayliteracies.blogspot.com/2014/09/latest-book-in-our-series-learning.html?showComment=1490176252112

    May 29, 2021 at 6:48 am | Reply
  16. Gaylene Buccieri

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is basically a online game where you can do anything you want. sl is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you want to see more you can see these Second Life articles and blogs

    http://myvedana.blogspot.com/2012/04/shock-of-new.html

    May 30, 2021 at 7:36 am | Reply
  17. Cordell Lamus

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is basically a online game where you can do anything you want. sl is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you would like to see more you can see these sl articles and blogs

    http://everydayliteracies.blogspot.com/2014/05/imagination-wanted-mobile-devices-in.html?showComment=1471968091042

    May 31, 2021 at 6:22 am | Reply
  18. Siu Arington

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is basically a online game where you can do anything you want. Second life is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you would like to see more you can see these Second Life authors and blogs

    http://everydayliteracies.blogspot.com/2014/09/latest-book-in-our-series-learning.html?showComment=1498439715914

    June 3, 2021 at 12:49 am | Reply
  19. Sabina Gilson

    This was great! I would like you to clean up all this spam though

    https://www.linkedin.com/in/yusufhanafy

    June 4, 2021 at 7:13 pm | Reply
  20. Desire Scharnberg

    This was awesome! I would like you to clean up all this spam though

    https://www.linkedin.com/in/yusufhanafy

    June 5, 2021 at 6:37 am | Reply
  21. Bill Stanzione

    This was awesome! I would like you to clean up all this spam though

    https://www.linkedin.com/in/yusufhanafy

    June 11, 2021 at 9:48 am | Reply
  22. Clyde Gillard

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is essentially a game where you can do anything you want. sl is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you would like to see more you can see these second life articles and blogs

    http://amusingspace.blogspot.com/2009/09/love-is-waatching-someone-die.html

    June 12, 2021 at 4:33 pm | Reply
  23. Christian Sommella

    I don't know about you all but I love airplanes. I had a friend in highschool that loved airplanes, so here are some airplane related stuff I don't know about you guys but I love airplanes. I had a friend in highschool that loved airplanes, so here are some airplane related stuff https://www.airlinereporter.com/2010/06/taxi-tests-complete-for-the-boeing-787-za005-first-flight-tomorrow/

    http://urlm.co/g/c/f/163873

    June 13, 2021 at 3:06 am | Reply
  24. Faustino Furl

    I don't know about you people but I love airplanes. I had a friend in highschool that loved airplanes, so here are some airplane related stuff I don't know about you guys but I love airplanes. I had a friend in highschool that loved airplanes, so here are some airplane related stuff https://www.airlinereporter.com/2010/03/ten-interesting-facts-about-the-rolls-royce-trent-1000-engines-used-on-the-boeing-787-dreamliner/

    http://www.christydena.com/2007/03/medieval-help-desk/comment-page-1/

    June 13, 2021 at 5:42 pm | Reply
  25. Sherrie Seiwell

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is basically a game where you can do anything you want. SL is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you would like to see more you can see these sl websites and blogs

    http://myvedana.blogspot.com/2005/09/flatpack-anytime-anywhere.html?showComment=1275625252594&m=0

    June 15, 2021 at 4:02 am | Reply
  26. Jame Ha

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is essentially a online game where you can do anything you want. Second life is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you want to see more you can see these second life articles and blogs

    http://everydayliteracies.blogspot.com/2014/08/farewell-to-jack-shallcrass-splendid.html?showComment=1482810555043

    June 18, 2021 at 11:46 am | Reply
  27. Mathilde Brussell

    Have you ever heard of second life (sl for short). It is essentially a online game where you can do anything you want. sl is literally my second life (pun intended lol). If you want to see more you can see these second life authors and blogs

    http://myvedana.blogspot.com/2006/02/romance-aint-dead.html?showComment=1140367980000&m=0

    June 21, 2021 at 5:38 pm | Reply

Leave a Reply to Wes Waltersdorf


 

CNN welcomes a lively and courteous discussion as long as you follow the Rules of Conduct set forth in our Terms of Service. Comments are not pre-screened before they post. You agree that anything you post may be used, along with your name and profile picture, in accordance with our Privacy Policy and the license you have granted pursuant to our Terms of Service.