The Barbarian

At the Cairo train station, Diana Standing and her wealthy fiancé Gerald Hume arrive to marry and begin their Egyptian voyage. Diana, though with Egyptian roots, sees herself as part of the British upper class. Jamil El Shehab, a roguish dragoman, notices them and quickly positions himself as their guide.

While touring the Pyramids, Jamil entertains Diana with love songs and uses his access as a dragoman to get time alone with her. He schemes to keep Diana away from Gerald and deepen their connection. The attraction between them grows even as Diana remains engaged to Gerald.

Pasha Achmed, Diana's fiancé's unscrupulous associate, persuades Gerald to leave Cairo to inspect their aqueduct project. Jamil learns of the deception and uses blackmail to stay in Diana's orbit. The situation sets up a power struggle over Diana's affections.

Jamil leverages his position to enter Diana's hotel bedroom and kisses her passionately. She briefly returns the kiss but then fires him, ending their immediate affair. The confrontation leaves both emotionally exposed and more entangled.

Diana and Gerald set out on a caravan across the desert with a new guide, but Jamil follows and eventually replaces the replacement. The pursuit reignites their dangerous attraction and pushes them toward perilous choices.

That night, Jamil's romantic singing moves Diana, drawing her into his arms again. Realizing the danger, she strikes him with a whip in anger, yet the feelings between them remain unresolved. The tension between duty and passion continues to simmer.

On the way back to Cairo, Jamil diverts Diana to Pasha's oasis retreat. He lies to Pasha that Diana paid him to bring her to the powerful man, deepening the trap. Pasha's arrival foreshadows a coercive confrontation.

Pasha forces himself on Diana, who cries out for Jamil to save her. He intervenes, and the two ride off together into the night, continuing their tumultuous bond. The escape solidifies their bond amid danger.

The next day, Pasha's guards close in, and in the ensuing fight Jamil kills them. Left with only one horse, he makes Diana walk behind him as he rides ahead. At a desert pool, he drinks with her and finally reveals that he is a prince in disguise.

During a desert tribal ceremony, Jamil proposes marriage but Diana publicly rejects him by tossing the ceremonial water in his face. His humiliation in front of his father and tribe devastates him, and he arranges for an escort to return Diana to Cairo.

Back in Cairo, Diana recounts her captivity, prompting the army to be dispatched to arrest Jamil on piracy and related crimes. Jamil remains at large as the wedding plans continue to unfold, keeping hope alive for reconciliation.

Just before the wedding, Jamil returns to Diana's room to sing one last time, offering his life as a wedding gift if she rejects him again. Realizing she truly loves him, Diana opts for him and rides away together with Jamil.

Sometime later, Diana cradles Jamil in her arms as they float down the Nile on a boat, signaling their union. Diana reveals that her mother was Egyptian, and Jamil reassures her that love transcends origins and social boundaries.