Youssef El Sebai

Writing

Youssef El Sebai

Born — Died

1917-06-17 — 1978-02-18

Place of birth

Cyprus

Known for

Writing

Credits

23 titles

Youssef El Sebaei was an Egyptian novelist. He was born in Cairo in 1917, and joined the Military Faculty in 1935, and stayed there as a staff member for years following his graduation. He started his writing career in the mid 1940's, beginning with short stories, and then focusing on novels. He is most known for writing numerous novels tht were adapted later to film and television, including the 1952 revolution epic "Rodda Qalby" (Give My Heart Back) and "Ard El Nefaq" (The Land of Hypocrisy). He was assassinated in Cyprus in 1978.

Known for

Jamila, the Algerian poster
7.2

Djamila, a young Algerian woman living with her brother Hadi and her uncle Mustafa in the Casbah district of Algiers under the French occupation of Algeria, sees the full extent of injustice, tyranny and cruelty on his compatriots by French soldiers. Jamila's nationalist spirit will be strengthened when French forces invade her university to arrest her classmate Amina who commits suicide by ingesting poison. Shortly after the prominent Algerian guerrilla leader Youssef takes refuge with her, she realizes that her uncle Mustafa is part of this network of anti-colonial rebel fighters. Her uncle linked her to the National Liberation Front (FLN). A series of events illustrate Jamila's participation in resistance operations against the occupier before she was finally captured and tortured. Finally, despite the efforts of her French lawyer, Jamila is sentenced to death...

Jamila, the Algerian

1958

Return My Heart poster
5.4

In Egypt forties and before the 14th of July revolution in 1952, a poor family lives in a prince's palace where the father works as a gardener. The family has two children Ali and Hassan. Ali grows up liking the prince's daughter who loves him too. Now grown ups, they realize how impossible this love story is. Joining the army, Ali fights in Palestine while the brother joins the police and is part of the King's guards. Ali gets back from Palestine and joins the secret military movement that will soon rule Egypt, The Free Officers. The revolution starts and the Free Officers are now in charge, putting Ali against his brother as a guard for the king and also against his lover, the prince's daughter as the revolution will confiscate all her family's wealth.

Return My Heart

1957

My Love... Always poster
5.7

Farida yields to the pressure of her father and marries the businessman Osama despite her love for Dr. Ibrahim. She lives with him in Paris a miserable life. Ibrahim succeeds in his work and becomes a famous doctor, while Farida gets divorced and returns to Egypt but a great tragedy awaits her.

My Love... Always

1980

Life is a Moment poster
NR

In the wake of the June 1967 war, Naamat lives on the hot side of her life, with her husband Abdelkader, the editor of one of the newspapers in which she works as a liberator and abuser with many capabilities, including his articles calling for despair during the war with Israel; That national action is the key to one's personality. So she took care of volunteer work in a hospital, she got to know a group of fighters, including Mahmoud, the lightning officer who has trouble with his wife, and others who gave themselves to serve the homeland.

Life is a Moment

1978

Among the Ruins poster
8.0

Mona falls in love with her college professor Mahmoud despite the fact that he's a married man and many years her senior. Mona is forced to marry another man and leaves Egypt. Years later, Mona returns and finds out that Mahmoud has been hit by a car and is now in a hospital. They meet again and recall their past romance.

Among the Ruins

1959

The Last Night poster
7.5

During 1942, Nadia Burhan lives with her mother in Alexandria, Fawzia lives with her husband Shaker, whom she married against her family's will. Nadia meets Salah and agree to get married. Fawzia dies from a German bombardment of the city, and Nadia has amnesia and Fawzia's husband tries to delude Nadia that she's Fawzia.

The Last Night

1963

Behind the camera

Jamila, the Algerian poster
7.2

Djamila, a young Algerian woman living with her brother Hadi and her uncle Mustafa in the Casbah district of Algiers under the French occupation of Algeria, sees the full extent of injustice, tyranny and cruelty on his compatriots by French soldiers. Jamila's nationalist spirit will be strengthened when French forces invade her university to arrest her classmate Amina who commits suicide by ingesting poison. Shortly after the prominent Algerian guerrilla leader Youssef takes refuge with her, she realizes that her uncle Mustafa is part of this network of anti-colonial rebel fighters. Her uncle linked her to the National Liberation Front (FLN). A series of events illustrate Jamila's participation in resistance operations against the occupier before she was finally captured and tortured. Finally, despite the efforts of her French lawyer, Jamila is sentenced to death...

Jamila, the Algerian

1958

Return My Heart poster
5.4

In Egypt forties and before the 14th of July revolution in 1952, a poor family lives in a prince's palace where the father works as a gardener. The family has two children Ali and Hassan. Ali grows up liking the prince's daughter who loves him too. Now grown ups, they realize how impossible this love story is. Joining the army, Ali fights in Palestine while the brother joins the police and is part of the King's guards. Ali gets back from Palestine and joins the secret military movement that will soon rule Egypt, The Free Officers. The revolution starts and the Free Officers are now in charge, putting Ali against his brother as a guard for the king and also against his lover, the prince's daughter as the revolution will confiscate all her family's wealth.

Return My Heart

1957

My Love... Always poster
5.7

Farida yields to the pressure of her father and marries the businessman Osama despite her love for Dr. Ibrahim. She lives with him in Paris a miserable life. Ibrahim succeeds in his work and becomes a famous doctor, while Farida gets divorced and returns to Egypt but a great tragedy awaits her.

My Love... Always

1980

Life is a Moment poster
NR

In the wake of the June 1967 war, Naamat lives on the hot side of her life, with her husband Abdelkader, the editor of one of the newspapers in which she works as a liberator and abuser with many capabilities, including his articles calling for despair during the war with Israel; That national action is the key to one's personality. So she took care of volunteer work in a hospital, she got to know a group of fighters, including Mahmoud, the lightning officer who has trouble with his wife, and others who gave themselves to serve the homeland.

Life is a Moment

1978

Among the Ruins poster
8.0

Mona falls in love with her college professor Mahmoud despite the fact that he's a married man and many years her senior. Mona is forced to marry another man and leaves Egypt. Years later, Mona returns and finds out that Mahmoud has been hit by a car and is now in a hospital. They meet again and recall their past romance.

Among the Ruins

1959

The Last Night poster
7.5

During 1942, Nadia Burhan lives with her mother in Alexandria, Fawzia lives with her husband Shaker, whom she married against her family's will. Nadia meets Salah and agree to get married. Fawzia dies from a German bombardment of the city, and Nadia has amnesia and Fawzia's husband tries to delude Nadia that she's Fawzia.

The Last Night

1963

Land of Hypocrisy poster
7.6

A man who is struggling with life's daily problems, especially his troublesome wife, accidentally runs into a man who makes bills that change human behavior, and his life changes.

Land of Hypocrisy

1968

Traces in the Sand poster
8.3

A man suffering from delirium because of the secrets he hides.

Traces in the Sand

1954

Inni rahela poster
10.0

The film revolves around Aida (Madiha Yousry) who loves her cousin, the officer Ahmed (Emad Hamdy), and he reciprocates the same feelings. Her father (Serag Mounir) refuses to let her marry him and threatens to destroy his future. He marries her against her will to the son of the Prime Minister so that he can benefit from his father's influence. Ahmed's hope of marrying Aida is lost, so he marries another woman, but she soon dies while Aida discovers her husband's betrayal.

Inni rahela

1955

Soul lover poster
NR

Aida is a beautiful woman. She falls madly in love with a man who loves her the same way but she faces opposition from her father.

Soul lover

1973

Wives killing association poster
NR

A husband and his wife suffer from permanent disputes between them, and the husband notices that all his acquaintances suffer from the same problem with their wives, so he decides to establish a secret society to kill wives, while the wife owns the building in which they live and insists on evicting the residents of the roof, due to their delay in paying the rent, while a love story arises between one of them and the daughter of the building owner.

Wives killing association

1962

Bahia poster
10.0

The story of the conflict between one of the poles of feudalism and his oppression to peasants by burning their crops and lands until they're unable to pay their debts. When Bahia's father confronts him, the feudal lord tries to rape her, but Yassin stands up to him.

Bahia

1960

Valley of Memories poster
NR

Ra'fat marries Souad against his family's wishes and they go to live in Syria. When Ra'fat dies, Souad works to support her daughter Sahar who wants to marry her neighbor Walid. Souad falls ill but hides it from her daughter whom she sends to live with her rich aunt, Dalwat, in Cairo.

Valley of Memories

1978

We Don't Sow the Thorns poster
6.5

Sayida lives a life full of tragedies, starting with her escape from her stepmother who treated her like a servant, her attempt to flee Abbas who keeps chasing her, her suffering from her husband who seizes her money and her involvement with a prostitution ring.

We Don't Sow the Thorns

1970

Gharam Al-Asyad poster
7.0

Two wealthy brothers have feelings for the stableman's daughter. When the younger son tries to rape her, the girl runs away from the house. A fashion designer takes her in and she becomes a famous model until the older brother runs into her.

Gharam Al-Asyad

1961

The Love Street poster
7.3

A poor graduated singer struggling to get his chance, disguises into an old music teacher to work in a girl's school. A bet is launched between two of the leading students to trap this teacher into their affection.

The Love Street

1958

Nadia poster
6.0

The twins (Nadia and Mona) live in peace in Cairo with their father, a university professor, and their French mother. While Nadia is shy, Mona is bold and free. Nadia is exposed to a fire accident, and the father dies, so the family is forced to travel to France, where Mona also dies, but after... Nadia writes to Dr. Medhat with a picture of Mona, and he is about to come to France to see her, so Nadia falls into trouble for fear of discovering her true nature.

Nadia

1969

Lover's Walk poster
7.0

Lover's Walk

Lover's Walk

1957

امرأة بلا قيد poster
NR

Abdel Hamid, who works with the Border Guards at Ras El-Bar, crosses paths with the gypsy Nour who makes use of his job to facilitate her drug-smuggling operations with chief Abu Doma. When Abdel Hamid discovers her deceit, he quarrels with Abu Doma and hits him, causing him to lose consciousness.

امرأة بلا قيد

1978

Mawa'ed Ma' Almady poster
8.0

Hamdi (Salah Zulfikar), the son of a factory owner, falls in love with Fatima (Mariam Fakhr El-Din), the daughter of one of the factory workers. Hamdi begins teaching her to read and write and they become involved in a love affair. He prepares to marry her but is surprised by his father's desire to marry him to Tahia (Sohair El-Babli), the daughter of a competing factory owner. Hamdi refuses to fulfill this desire, so his father expels him. Fatima decides to run away so as not to stand in the way of Hamdi's happiness and future.

Mawa'ed Ma' Almady

1961

Bekaya azraa poster
7.0

The film takes place in a social drama framework, where (Nabila) works as a teacher in Cairo, and on her first day of work she quarrels with (Hoda), the spoiled and stubborn daughter of the former minister because of the death of her mother when she was young. Abdel Fattah, (Hoda's) father, invites Nabila to apologize to her, but he falls in love with her and marries her.

Bekaya azraa

1962

Something in My Life poster
NR

Aida lives a quiet life with her much older husband. When she meets the young doctor Ahmed at the train station in Alexandria, they fall in love, but Aida feels that she is betraying her husband, and she is torn between love and a stable life.

Something in My Life

1966

Life is a Carnival poster
9.0

A group of talented youth exploited by the head of a gang in his suspicious work while a dance coach tries to make a band of them.

Life is a Carnival

1975