The Sheik and I

Part of the 4th Annual Free Thinking Film Festival 2013   Saturday November 2, 2013, 4:30 PM Room 156, Library & Archives Canada 395 Wellington, Ottawa
		The Sheik and I   Watch the Trailer 104 minutes, United States, 2012 Reinventing the wheel
	Commissioned by the Sharjah Biennial of the United Arab Emirates to make a film on the theme of "art as a subversive act," independent filmmaker Caveh Zahedi goes overboard. Told that he can do whatever he wants except make fun of the Sheik, who rules the country and finances the Biennial, Zahedi decides to do just that. He turns his camera on the Biennial itself and gleefully presses every culturally sensitive button he can find. But his court jester antics fails to amuse. Zahedi's film is banned for blasphemy and he is threatened with a fatwa.  "Whether mocking the Muslim world or indicting Western attitudes toward that world — perhaps a little of both — “The Sheik and I” argues vociferously that it’s always better to offend than to bore."      The New York Times, Dec. 2012 "At once preposterous and profound, the film proposes elemental questions about freedom of speech and artistic ethics."      Wall Street Journal, Dec. 2012 You can buy tickets for the 4th Annual Free Thinking Film 2013 at Compact Music (785 Bank, 206 Bank) or online at ticketweb.ca.  Tickets will also be available at the door.