Sheikh Jackson (2017)
Directed by Amr Salama
Written by Amr Salama, Omar Khaled
Starring Ahmed El Fishawy, Ahmed Malek, Maged El Kedwany
Release Date September 11th, 2017
Sheikh Jackson is a rare and wonderful movie. This Egyptian production directed by Amr Salama and co-written by Salama and Omar Khaled, tells the unique and touching story of a Muslim cleric who has a crisis of faith related to the death of Michael Jackson. The story is about a man confronting his faith, his past, his family and his very self and each step of the way, this measured and thoughtful drama rarely misses a beat.
Sheikh Jackson stars Ahmed El Feshawy as Sheikh, that’s what people call him anyway, a cleric, a prayer leader, who has found himself unable to cry recently. Tears are urgent reminders for Sheikh that he is in loving fearful worship of God. That he is finding himself unable to reach tears during burial ceremonies and daily prayers is a significant crisis; so significant that he seeks medical attention from a psychiatrist.
The story of Sheikh Jackson shifts back and forth in time with the modern Sheikh a deeply serious and pious man in crisis and the young Sheikh who was rebellious and came to idolize Michael Jackson as a way of getting closer to a girl he liked. There is also a connection between his love of The King of Pop and his late mother, but you will have to see the movie to find out more about that.
Sheikh’s crisis of faith happens to coincide with the death of Michael Jackson on June 25th, 2009. He doesn’t want to believe that something as superfluous and decadent as a teenage appreciation of an American pop star could cause the very foundation of his faith to be shaken but the journey, he goes on isn’t nearly that simple. It’s a journey home to memories of his mother and his brutish, bullying but loving father.
Find my full length review in the Geeks Community on Vocal
