This Monday we watched the film, The Battle of Algiers. Once again I was very tired and barely conscious. However, I did enjoy the film and thought it was suprisingly well made and actually rather relevent to current issues in Iraq and Afganistan.
I have to applaud director Gillo Pontecorvo for his incredible dedication to realism in this film. This film often feels like a documentary rather than a dramatised film. I liked the fact that Pontecorvo, showed both sides of the story without demonising or making a hero out of either the French colonialists or the resisting Algierian natives. Apparently nearly all of the actors in this film were non-proffesional and were just locals chosen by Pontecorvo. I think this really shows in the film and adds greatly to the realism. The film was made in 1966 only four years after the Algerian War finished. Once again, I think that making a film in the actual location the war took place, so close after the event is probably another reason that the film feels so real.
I have to applaud director Gillo Pontecorvo for his incredible dedication to realism in this film. This film often feels like a documentary rather than a dramatised film. I liked the fact that Pontecorvo, showed both sides of the story without demonising or making a hero out of either the French colonialists or the resisting Algierian natives. Apparently nearly all of the actors in this film were non-proffesional and were just locals chosen by Pontecorvo. I think this really shows in the film and adds greatly to the realism. The film was made in 1966 only four years after the Algerian War finished. Once again, I think that making a film in the actual location the war took place, so close after the event is probably another reason that the film feels so real.
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