The Layalina Review

VOL. V NO. 17, July 31-August 13, 2009

Teen comedies have rarely been accused of being 'tasteful,' but at least one woman in Egypt says the recent summer flick "I Love You, Man" has gone too far. The "goofy" American comedy, recently released in Egypt, features a pet dog which the main character has named Anwar Al-Sadat, writes Sarah El-Deeb for the Associated Press.

Rokaya Sadat, daughter of the Nobel Peace Prize winner and former Egyptian president, is not amused.

"This is a disaster, a serious affront," El-Deeb quotes Sadat's lawyer. The scenes involving the offending dog were removed for the Arab release of the film, but were nonetheless discovered and published on an Egyptian website.

El-Deeb goes on to point out that the scene is especially insulting to Arab sensibilities because according to the laws of Islam dogs are considered particularly unclean, and "calling someone a dog is one of the worst insults in the Middle East."

Rokaya Sadat is now suing the Egyptian Minister of Information Anas Feqi for allowing the movie to be released in Egyptian theaters, despite the exclusion of the offending scene, according to the Los Angeles Times blog Babylon & Beyond. She is seeking for the movie to be banned and all copies of it confiscated.

Sadat’s suit claims that the film "has crossed all the constitutional lines for freedom of speech, adding that such production presents an insult to her father as well as the whole country," continues the blog. Sadat has gained a reputation for intensely opposing any criticism or libelous claims against her father.

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry has also asked for an apology from DreamWorks Pictures, who produced the film, says The National. Additionally, Sadat has filed formal complaints with the US Embassy in Cairo.

"We sympathize with those members of his family and with Egyptians who feel offended by this Hollywood movie, but the truth is that no fleeting reference in a film can or will detract from his legacy," The National quotes Margaret White, a spokeswoman for the US Embassy.

The National goes on to cite several critics and media professionals who are speaking out against the film and who claim the scenes are "horrific and racist," "a crime and very rude," and even "punishable by international laws."

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