The only star that could be spotted on the closing night of the Dubai International Film Festival on Tuesday was on the silver screen.
Barring Simon Curtis, the director behind the stellar My Week With Marilyn and Arab stars such as Egyptian actor Mohammad Karim and Bilal Abdullah, the closing night was a relatively sober affair. Especially, when you take into account the electrifying star wattage displayed on the opening night with the Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol team in attendance (Note: we journalists have been a tad spoilt and are now clearly missing the sight of swooning fans hollering Tom Cruise's name and posters with "Tom: your mission is complete here").
But Dubai's movie-mad social set couldn't care less. For them getting an opportunity to see good films trumped all else.
"I heard some divine things about My Week With Marilyn and I feel privileged to see it first on screen," said Alvina Johnson, an invitee.
Meanwhile, British director Curtis was intent on clearing the air about his debut film, which has taken the entertainment world by storm.
"It's not a biopic of Marilyn Monroe nor is it her life story. It's a moment in time when she came to London to shoot for The Prince and the Showgirl in 1956. It's told from the point of view of a young, third assistant director," said Curtis on the red carpet.
When asked if he had checked the veracity of Colin Clark's claims, he said he had not strayed far from the memoirs.
"We took his account as written and published twenty years ago. We tried our best to tell that story," he said.
And it's this strain that seems to have fascinated the guests.
As Karim puts it, he's now anxious to see whether the film does justice to his matinee idol. "I am a big fan of Marilyn and I have always admired her. There was so much going on in her life. I want to check about the certain period that the director chose to make," said Karim on the red carpet.
He's not alone as festival-goers vouch that the rich roster of films — 176 films from across the globe — showcased at the seven-day Diff had tickled their imaginations too.
