Khaberni - The Eid al-Fitr movie season in Egypt witnessed a surprising development following a censor's decision to remove the film "The Gathering Serial Killer" from cinemas, just hours after its launch.
The creator and director of the film, Mohamed Salah El-Azab, commented on this decision via his official Facebook profile, expressing his frustration with the timing, stating: "God's will has been done. After obtaining all legal, governmental, and security clearances for writing, filming, and screening the film, we were surprised by an abrupt decision to pull the film from cinemas after showing it in all sessions on the day before Eid, a precedent of its kind".
On his part, the producer Ahmed El-Sobky revealed the background of this halt, clarifying in press statements that the ban is not final, but a temporary delay due to procedural reasons. El-Sobky explained that the censorship authorities informed them about the need to complete some administrative procedures which require the operation of governmental services and official agencies after the end of the Eid al-Fitr holiday.
The producer compared what the film "The Gathering Serial Killer" is facing to what recently happened with the film "The Atheist", which faced a similar crisis that led to its postponement before the authorities allowed it to be screened again in cinemas.
It is noteworthy that the film discusses a story inspired by real events that shook the Egyptian public opinion, and it was expected to strongly compete at the box office during the Eid season, but this decision has placed the fate of the project in a state of anticipation, pending what the coming days may reveal after the holiday.
