The Battle of Algiers (1966)

In the 1950s, fear and violence escalate as the people of Algiers fight for independence from the French government.

Director:

Gillo Pontecorvo

Writers:

Franco Solinas, Franco Solinas (story) (as F. Solinas)

Stars:

Brahim Hadjadj, Jean Martin, Yacef Saadi

Top Rated Movies #241 | Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 9 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Jean Martin	...	Col. Mathieu
Yacef Saadi	...	Djafar (as Saadi Yacef)
Brahim Hadjadj	...	Ali La Pointe (as Brahim Haggiag)
Samia Kerbash	...	One of the girls
Tommaso Neri	...	Captain
Ugo Paletti	...	Captain
Fusia El Kader	...	Halima
Franco Moruzzi	...	(as Franco Morici)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Mohamed Ben Kassen	...	Petit Omar

Storyline

A film commissioned by the Algerian government that shows the Algerian revolution from both sides. The French foreign legion has left Vietnam in defeat and has something to prove. The Algerians are seeking independence. The two clash. The torture used by the French is contrasted with the Algerian's use of bombs in soda shops. A look at war as a nasty thing that harms and sullies everyone who participates in it.

---

Plot Keywords:

algeria | struggle for independence | algerian | independence | military | 

---

Taglines:

The French Colonel...who was forced even to torture! One of the many women...who stopped at nothing to win! The Algerian Street Boy...who became a rebel hero!

---

Genres:

Drama | War

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Distributor

Country:

Italy Algeria

Language:

French Arabic English

Release Date:

20 September 1967 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Battle of Algiers

Filming Locations:

Algeria

Box Office

Budget:

$800,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$64,870 (USA) (9 January 2004)

Gross:

$55,908 (USA) (6 January 2017)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Igor Film, Casbah Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In 2003, the New York Times reported that the Pentagon screened this film for officers and civilian experts who were discussing the challenges faced by the US military forces in Iraq. The flier inviting guests to the screening read: "How to win a battle against terrorism and lose the war of ideas".

---

Goofs

Early on in the film when a man is being escorted to the guillotine in an Algiers prison, there is a cut from a long shot of the courtyard to a close-up and two men wearing suits suddenly appear by the guillotine even though there is no door nearby through which they could have emerged.

---

Quotes

Col. Mathieu: We need to have the Kasbah at our disposal. We have to sift through it and interrogate everyone. And that's where we find ourselves hindered by a conspiracy of laws and regulations that continue to operate as if Algiers were a holiday resort and not a battleground. We've requested a carte blanche, but that's very difficult to obtain. Therefore, it's necessary to find an excuse to legitimize our intervention and make it possible. It's necessary to create this for ourselves, this excuse. Unless ...

---

Connections

Referenced in Rewind This! (2013)

User Reviews

A savage war of peace.

An historian writing about the Algerian war against the French colonial authorities entitled his book "A Savage War of Peace". "The Battle of Algiers" provides many answers to that enigmatic title. It does not attempt to show us the entire war but centers on the city of Algiers. Even though you are told at the beginning that no documentary footage is used it is at times hard to believe as many of the images you see have a stark and often unsettling reality to them. Considering that this was a co production between Algeria and Italy the film is remarkable in that it does not turn itself a political tirade by taking sides. Instead the camera is a sort of neutral observer allowing us to witness events that spiraled from individual demonstrations to a full scale war of savage intensity. French officers who fought the Nazis a few years before degenerated into the mode of their former enemy while Algerians had no problems exploding bombs that would kill their own people. The camera shows no heros or villains but humanity in its darkest forms. This is a powerful film with superb direction and cinematography. It truly is one of a kind and once seen will never be forgotten.