? AT THE MOVIES-

Luc Besson’s Dogman is what you get when you cross Joker with Ace Ventura.Not necessarily in a good way, but not necessarily in a bad way either.

The father of hits and misses- The French director has been (derisively) called one of the pioneers of cinema du look since his start in the 1980s. Critics changed their tune when Leon: The Professional debuted in 1994, showing finally that Besson could “do” substance…

…but for every Leon there was a Lucy. The director has been, for four decades, releasing qualitatively inconsistent movies. Dogman is an ode to both the good and the bad.

The film is more tender and tragic than Besson’s usual M.O., but still retains the high-octane violence he’s known for. It follows Douglas Munrow (Caleb Landry Jones), a wheelchair-bound eccentric whose brutal upbringing amplified his love for dogs, to the point where his relationship with them is almost psychic.

He uses this connection to have the pups stage robberies and take down violent gun-slinging gangs threatening the community. Absurd? Yes. Thoroughly satisfying to watch? Absolutely.

It is an absurd tale of revenge, mostly easy to digest with a little suspension of disbelief. It’s entertainingly ridiculous — though sometimes unintentionally. Whenever a bout of preposterousness took us out of the illusion, Jones’s performance instantly pulled us back in.

Jones’s bravura easily offsets the directorial and writing room shortcomings. The movie produced the striking Shakespearean line of “I can walk, but only to my death,” but within minutes, followed it up with the 2010 Tumblr angst post-esque “I believe in God, but I’m not sure He believes in me.” But Jones, who manages to be charming and terrifying at the same time, lands both lines — a testament to his dramatic gravitas.

WHERE TO WATCH- You can catch Dogman in Cairo Festival City Galaxy and VIP cinemas.

? FROM THE BOOKSTORE-

The Philosopher of Palo Alto by John Tinnell, the director of digital studies at the University of Colorado, traces the roots of today’s internet age back to one creative source: Mark Weiser. Once a pioneering innovator on a quest for connectivity, Weiser’s legacy still looms large over the tech industry.

Tinnell draws a portrait of an outlier in Silicon Valley — a computer scientist whose first love was philosophy, whose mind was always preoccupied with the purpose of machines and technology within our lives.

The father of ubiquitous computing, as he was called, was the first CTO at Xerox Palo Alto Research Center. Tinnell posits that Weiser, who passed away at the age of 46 in 1999, would be heartbroken if he had lived to see the way technology is used today.

Good technology, according to Weiser, should not mine our experiences for saleable data or demand our attention — it should boost our intuition as we move through life. After meticulous research and interviews with Weiser’s family and colleagues, Tinnell chronicles the tech mogul’s struggle to initiate a new era of computing with the hopes of making it something better.

At the heart of Tinnell’s exploration is the innovator’s desire for a deeper connection, which inspired his work and his dream for what technology should be. It is an almost intimate account that reveals how one man’s dream of benevolent computing created a hyper-connected, surveillance-heavy nightmare. It is a necessary read for anyone interested in understanding how technology is shaping society today and vice versa.

WHERE TO FIND IT- Tinnell’s profile of Weiser is currently unavailable in local bookstores, but you can find the hardcover on Amazon for USD 25 (marked down from USD 29) or you can get started on the Kindle version for USD 20.99.

? HOT AND FRESH OUT OF THE KITCHEN-

Alrukn Alyamani has the decadent and authentic Middle Eastern feast you have been looking for.

Found in Obour, the restaurant offers hearty and authentic Yemeni dishes you might not be able to find easily. The restaurant’s menu speaks to patrons with a penchant for proteins: Their large menu consists of chicken, lamb, and beef dishes to choose from.

You’ll have to dig for your meat. In dedication to authenticity, Alrukn Alyamani cooks most of their meat dishes underground over a wood fire, trapping all the good flavors and juices within the meat.

If you want a taste of each of the Madfoun dishes, order the Madfoun Lovers’ Tray, but make sure to bring a big group — the dish serves eight people. Smaller groups can order individual meals.

The chicken mandi is a well-done classic, and the chicken madghoot, prepared in a pressure cooker, falls off the bones. The fahsa was new for us, and was delicious to eat with their Yemeni bread.

The dessert menu is short and sweet. TheirMa’soub is a must-try, a warm dish made of Yemeni bread soaked in honey, bananas, and nuts. Their Arika is kind of similar to Om Ali, but contains mashed dates, nuts, coconut, honey, and Yemeni spices.

PRO TIP- Watch out for the complimentary sauces — even our most seasoned spicy connoisseurs could barely handle it. Also, the restaurant only serves juice and soda and only delivers to Obour.

? Per person: EGP 200-500

? Outdoor seating: Yes

? Alcohol: No

? Accessibility friendly: Yes

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