This is the second film made about Anwar al-Sadat. The first, an American film from the early eighties, was banned in Egypt. According to Sadat’s wife Gehan, it was censored because it inaccurately, portrayed Sadat in a positive light while “making a clown out of Gamal Abdel Nasser," according to thisiscyberia.com.
The new Egyptian movie spans some thirty years, from Sadat’s pre-revolutionary days to his assassination in 1981 by a man who claimed he had also killed the last pharaoh. Although the film also shows a bit of his private life, its main focus is on Sadat’s role as a war and peacemaker with Israel.
The film was initiated by actor Ahmed Zaki, who great difficult in finding funds for the project. Due to Sadat’s controversial legacy regarding Israel, his image varies from being a hero, a traitor, to merely a realist.
As a consequence, banks, producers and TV networks at first backed off, thinking the film wasn’t marketable. Zaki, however, was determined to succeed. He sold his house, bought the script written by Ahmed Bahqat, asked Mohammed Khan to direct the film and started shooting.
Zaki himself plays the main part, making it his second presidential role after previously portraying Nasser. Soon investors reconsidered their initial refusal, while the government allowed the crew to film at military sites – Albawaba.com
