Hassan el-Banna

As the centennial anniversary of the birth of the Muslim Brothers' founder arrives, controversy around Hassan el-Banna's character continues to flare up, this time because of Ramadan soap operas and the world of drama.

While a movie script about Banna's life written by a secular writer is awaiting feedback from Egypt's Censorship Authorities, Banna's 72-year-old son has filed a lawsuit against a soap series that allegedly depicts Banna as a "supporter of violence" currently showing on Egyptian TV. In the meantime, the Muslim Brotherhood itself has announced it is producing its own movie about its founder.

The drive behind the Brothers' recent entrance into the field of drama has been Mohssen Radi, a 51-year-old Member of Parliament and owner of a small media production company.

In an interview with IslamOnline.net, Radi recalled his first attempt, in 1989, to make a movie about his idol.

"It was after I saw movies about historical figures that influenced the Arab world like the ones about Libyan revolutionary Omar al-Mokhtar, Egyptian social reformer Qassem Amin, and former Egyptian presidents Nasser and Sadat."

He approached Ahmad Seif al-Islam Hassan el-Banna, the son of the "Martyred Imam," who gave him the green light to produce a movie about his father.

"I was impressed by the genius of this figure who established an Islamic group which acquired a presence in eighty different states," Radi said.

"Despite Banna's great role in Egyptian political life, he is completely absent from our documented history because of the conflict between the Muslim Brothers and the successive regimes that ruled the country. I wanted this work to be an expression of gratitude to the man who influenced my way of thinking and centrist understanding of religion. I could have joined those who went down the path of violence if I hadn't come across Banna's thought."

The project never saw the light of day, though.

"We got totally engulfed in the conflicts the authorities dragged us into," Radi said. "I was detained several times because of my membership of the Brotherhood. There was no time to make a movie."

However, over the past four years, Radi has been busy reviving his project, collecting documents and rare photos, visiting places Banna resided in, and hearing testimonies of his contemporaries. Six months ago he reached an agreement with Hassan el-Banna's family about the production scheme, the details of which will be announced in a press conference following `Eid Al-Fitr.

Little is known about the blueprint of the new mega project, but Banna's son Ahmad confided to IslamOnline.net that a new joint venture production company will be established with a budget of 20 million Egyptian pounds.

"We will do everything according to the law," Ahmad said. "The company will carry out a feasibility study and will distribute the profits among the contributors if the movie succeeds. We will also declare a bank account, to make it possible to receive contributions."

Despite circulating rumors that the Brothers are recruiting secular celebrity scenarists — such as Osama Anwar Ukasha, scenarist of the famous Helmeya Nights soap, and Wahid Hamed, who wrote several of Adel Imam's movie scripts — Radi insisted that none of these have been approached.

"Hassan el-Banna's family and the Muslim Brothers disagree with how those writers depicted the Brothers previously," he said. "They tend to put all eggs in one basket and do not differentiate between the peaceful Muslim Brothers and violent organizations such as Takfir wal Hijra. We have seen a misunderstanding of Hassan el-Banna's and the Brotherhood's ideas in movies such as Birds of Darkness, The Terrorist, and Terrorism and Kebab, written by Wahid Hamed."

Hamed reportedly flirted with the idea of writing an independent script about Banna's life. Eventually he left the idea. "Writing a movie script about an unconventional man like Hassan el-Banna takes huge effort. He's a man who confronted a government, a king, and a British occupier," he told the liberal daily Al-Masry Al-Youm last February. "I'm not sure I want to go ahead with the project, as there are others who already wrote scenarios."

Indeed, secular-leaning journalist Mohamed el-Baz had already finished a movie script which awaits the permission of the security services, before he can submit it to the Censorship Authorities. "With a sensitive movie like this one, the security services have the final say," Baz said. "The Censor's role is nominal. I passed the script to the security services via some personal contacts, and I'm waiting for the reply. In the meantime, I obtained a verbal approval from Ali Abu Shadi." Baz also said he finished writing a biography of Hassan el-Banna, and the book was expected to be out in the next Cairo Annual Bookfair, in January.

Baz's move drew the Brothers' wrath, because of his "known hostility" towards the group, as Banna's son put it. "It will not be objective," Ahmad charged, "and I'm surprised he neither consulted with nor talked with Banna's family."

Baz on his part said, "If the Brothers think I am not neutral, then I could say the same of them," deflecting the group's accusations. "They are trying to depict Hassan el-Banna as an angel without faults. I will accept the blame if I have mentioned facts that are historically wrong."

Baz added that he did not need to consult with Banna's family. "I'm not writing about his personal life. My sources were the memoirs of politicians of different persuasions who were Banna's contemporaries. I'm focusing on his political stands vis-à-vis the King, the Brits, and the Egyptian political parties of his time."

Baz refused to disclose the name of the potential film producer.

The Brothers, on their part, have thrown their weight behind a group of writers headed by a Brotherhood historian named Dr. Waleed Qutb.

When contacted, Qutb preferred not to disclose any details about the project until the press conference which is scheduled after `Eid Al-Fitr has been held. He only stated that "there is a consensus that the project will be in drama, rather than documentary form."

Who is to depict Banna's life in the movie has been another subject of controversy, with several names of established Egyptian movie stars tossed around in Cairo's art and political circles, most notably veteran actor Nour el-Sharif.

Banna's son, however, denied assigning his father's role to Sharif. "We are looking for suitable people who resemble Hassan el-Banna during his different stages in life," Ahmad said. "I hope the person who will play the imam's role will be talented and has played respectable roles previously."

Ahmad also added he preferred Egypt, where Banna spent his life, to be the location of shooting and that he had refused suggestions to film abroad.

"My hope is that the censor will not pose an obstacle. We are not attacking anyone," he stressed.

Radi of the Muslim Brothers says he has sent the head of Censorship Authorities, Dr. Ali Abu Shadi, the summary of the scenario, which has received initial approval. If denied the permit, Radi threatens to take the case to the Parliament and court.

Whether the Brothers-produced multimillion-dollar movie will see the light or not, the Islamist group's willingness to enter the filmmaking industry has raised a few eyebrows. Opponents of the group have frequently cited the Brothers' conservative stands toward art related issues. In the 1990s, lawyers affiliated with the group launched a series of lawsuits against movies they deemed "immodest," and on occasion supported censorship of "un-Islamic" books.

Observers such as Hossam Tammam, the author of The Brothers in Transformation, sense a change in the generational and social composition of the group, which is steering it towards the mainstream.

"The Brotherhood cadre has changed," he argued. "It has become socially assimilated. These days they (the Islamists) are not necessarily the sons of the poverty belts and the marginalized."

"Securing a foothold among the urban professional classes," argued Tammam, "meant that many group members now understand that in the age of satellites you have to find yourself a place in the visual world. You need to have a picture, a satellite channel, a movie to be watched."

"The Brothers' entry into politics has happened at the expense of their identity, forcing them to be more pragmatic. So forget about the Islamic state, the caliphate, and so on," he continued. "If you study the Brothers' agenda, it will strike you as similar to that of liberal parties with a religious flavor, such as Christian parties in Europe."