– BERLINALE 2026: The door of the titular safe exit in Mohammed Hammad’s careful and complex psychological thriller is either shut or only slightly ajar
Marwan Waleed in Safe Exit
If you had to choose between controlling external or internal tension, what would you do? Unfortunately for Sameem (Marwan Waleed), the protagonist of Mohammed Hammad’s Safe Exit, screening in the Berlinale’s Panorama strand, neither is an option – not for now, at least. He is in his twenties, belongs to Cairo’s working class and is emotionally stunted by a traumatic past. Sameem is a Christian, and he and his father were abducted by ISIS in Libya ten years prior. His father refused to convert to Islam and was slaughtered, while Sameem was freed, only to emerge as a witness to horror and a living warning. The only way he can control his past is by writing memoirs and hoping to get them published, which in Cairo costs a lot for unknown debutants.
Partly because of the trauma, Sameem grew up to be obedient and even submissive, as he characterises himself. His lowly position in society also takes away a sense of control – even though he works as a guard, so technically someone who has agency, it’s a phoney job, only for appearances. His brother is in jail for taking part in a street brawl, and his neighbour is a religious extremist sought by the police, who takes refuge on Sameem’s rooftop.
Things change when a woman without any ID or a place to stay (Noha Foad) comes to his building to see a doctor. Sameem, nolens volens, gives her shelter in his brother’s room and gradually more support. She is ill, illiterate and lonely – the only support she has is a much younger security guard and the Virgin Mary, whose images hang in Sameem’s “apartment”.
This network of social connections may sound complicated on paper, but in Hammad’s film, it’s clearly and neatly introduced and executed. It requires patience to immerse ourselves in this world of those who are too rich to die yet too poor to live the life they want. In turn, it rewards us with a full-bodied story, which is deceptively complex in its simplicity. It’s not flashy or fast-paced, so it may be overlooked in the deluge of festival offerings – but it shouldn’t. It’s analytical and emotionally quiet, which allows a lot of space for investigating and mapping out the on-screen world. Hammad’s focus is on his protagonists and their surroundings, but Safe Exit also examines societal issues. It shows systemic control and forced obedience. There is little room for change or social advancement, and it’s somehow ironic that Sameem lives on the rooftop of a building but is nowhere near the top of things in other areas of his life.
Cairo is not welcoming and is a polluted city, with everything covered in a thin layer of dust. Flats here are run-down, with the paint peeling off the walls. Safe Exit is a cousin of other recent Egyptian flicks that show young men who, in a way, live in their fathers’ shadow. This applies both literally and metaphorically, as in The Settlement [+see also:
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Safe Exit is an ironic title, as Hammad’s protagonist doesn’t have one. Personal trauma, religious identity and economic precarity are tightly interwoven, closing the door, rather than opening it. The film does not erupt in anger; instead, it observes how quiet resignation becomes a way of life.
Safe Exit is a co-production involving Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Qatar and Germany, staged by Pariedolia Productions, Mayana Films, Nomadis Images and Wika Productions. MAD World handles its world sales.
