The Battle of Algiers (1966)

*SPOILER FREE

In the mid 1960s Italian cinema made a film about the French colonization of Algeria from 1830–1962, but for unknown reasons the French did not make a film about the Italian colonization of Libya from 1911-1943.

The Battle of Algiers is a war drama set during the Algerian Revolution and War of Independence by the Algerian National Liberation Front against the French government between 1954-1962. The film concentrates on the fear and violence the people have bear and follows mainly revolutionary fighter Ali La Pointe during (how the Algerian call it) the War of 1 November.

This is a story about freedom that waited for over a century to see the sun, a row portrait of the human condition and coast. This is a heartbreaking depiction of war and the horror of war.

Shot on location in a semi-documentary/newsreel style with mostly non-professional actors - some of which had lived through the real war - to add an extra layer of realism and authenticity.

The sensational music and sound design by Pontecorvo and Morricone play a significant role in the narrative. The sounds of gunfire, helicopters and truck engines on one hand and bomb blasts, ululation, wailing and chanting on the other hand symbolize the two different sides of the war poetically.

While banned in France for 5 years for not so obvious reasons, The Battle of Algiers was highly praised by filmmakers and festivals from the east to the west. From Stanley Kubrick reportedly saying "I couldn’t really understand what cinema was capable of without seeing The Battle of Algiers." to Warner Herzog having it required to be viewed by his film school students.

The Battle of Algiers is an extraordinary cinematic experience, an important, objective and sincere - for the lack of a better word - "fuck you" in the face of war, colonialism, and imperialism.

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Available to watch on HBO Max, Apple TV, The Criterion Collection, and on Amazon Prime Video

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