Chahine’s masterpiece, and possibly the most influential, best-known of all Arab movies. A psychological drama about a man with disabilities who grows fixated on a sexually liberated soda seller at the central Cairo train station, Chahine’s Berlinale competition nominee was one of only two films where he directed himself in the leading role. Touching upon the workers’ movement in post-monarchy Egypt and the diminishing role of the individual in the grand socialist machine, Cairo Station – which was a big commercial flop – is a work of great psychological depth that was ahead of its time. The naturalistic dialogue, real settings and focus on the marginalized class have propelled various critics to liken it to Italian neorealism.