This is about the liberation of Algeria from French colonial rule of 130 years. Independence finally happened in 1962. The film is made in documentary style and gives a vivid, realistic, blood soaked panoramic view of this social movement of the late fifties. The conflict is minutely etched by placing a couple of well fleshed characters under the lens. We see the rising tidal wave of a poorly armed population against the relative might of the French. It is considered a classic on urban guerrilla war. The movement starts out in a small way, a hand full of determined individuals, gathering momentum as a large populace is embraced in its unstoppable flow. The urban landscape is eloquently captured, the marketplaces, the crowds, calm or surging. A very authentic film about history in the process of making.
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It was so vivid and authentic that I found myself mistaking it for a documentary for a while. Roger Ebert chose it as the best film of 1968, though he was amused that he somehow placed it right above "2001: A Space Odyssey" (1968) in his Top 10 list of that year.
Yes, hard to believe it is not a documentary. It has pointed me to two of Rossellini's early films: Rome, Open City and Paisa. I wonder if you saw the gut wrenching Germany, Year Zero.
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