Rating: 4.5/5
Criterion Challenge 2024 | 52/52 | Any Criterion film from your watchlist
Algiers 1957 French Army soldiers stand around a stripped and shaken compatriot of Ali La Pointe, a commander of the Algerian National Liberation Front (FLN). The soldiers are happy that, after grueling torture, they were able to make him reveal the location of La Pointe’s hideout. They dress him in French Army fatigues, forcing him to come with them to ensure he isn’t lying, and then he can go free. The Army raids La Pointe’s home in The Casbah, running over rooftops and sending people out in droves. The compatriot points to a false wall behind which Mahmoud, Halima, Little Omar, and Ali La Pointe sit.
The Casbah 1954
People of Alegeria, our combat is directed against colonialism. Our aim: independence and restoration of the Algerian state, in accordance with Islamic principles and the respect of basic liberties, regardless of race or religion. To avoid bloodshed, we propose that the French authorities negotiate with us our right to self-determination. Algerians, it is your duty to save your country and restore its liberty. Its victory will be yours. Forward, brothers! Unite! The FLN calls you to arms.
Ali La Pointe has done what he has to do to survive. He was in and out of juvie from age 12 onward for things like vandalism and public disturbances. At 19, he did eight months in prison for insulting a police officer. He’s done his fair share of physical labor, from boxing to bricklaying. Now, the police are bringing him in again. They also bring in an FLN commandeer and execute him by beheading.
In the five months La Pointe spent in prison, the FLN politically radicalized La Pointe. Little Omar brings him a note, which La Pointe has him read because he is illiterate. The note orders La Pointe to murder a police officer who gets his information from a nearby informant. A woman in white hands La Pointe the revolver, but when he points it at the policeman, he finds the gun empty. La Point chases the woman in white, who leads him to FLN commander El-hadi Jafar. Jafar explains the intentions behind the setup and his plan to organize the FLN.
From here, the film branches off to multiple perspectives as it details The Battle of Algiers, which occurred during the Algerian War of Independence. The film also gives us the French perspective, doing its best to show both sides of the war:
We're neither madmen nor sadists. Those who call us fascists forget the role many of us played in the Resistance. Those who call us Nazis don't know that some of us survived Dachau and Buchenwald. We are soldiers. Our duty is to win.
Pontecorvo wanted this film to feel like a documentary, so he and cinematographer Marcello Gatti copied newsreel styles and documentary-esque editing. They also hired non-professional actors who had lived through the battle. The zooms have become such a cliche in TV and movies, but here, they feel revelatory in how they cut into the cinematic barrier. At the time, American releases noted that the film contained no actual newsreels.
Pontecorvo worked with Ennio Morricone on the score as a final bit of brilliance. Morricone deftly keeps his score in the background, keeping time more than adding triumph. But his Theme of Ali — dude, it sounds like “Born Slippy” by Underworld!
In a review for Pépé le Moko, I said that that film brought The Casbah to life more than any film I’ve seen. This one goes further, but having seen Pépé le Moko, seeing familiar streets and rooftops added another layer of realism to this movie.
Costa-Gavras’s Z felt similar to me, and it makes sense—Costa-Gavras cites this film as an influence. From Children of Men to Dunkirk, this film remains a touchstone for contemporary directors who want to make their war films feel more “real.” Even Stanley Kubrick, who faked the moon landing, was duped by this movie!
And I can see why — the film still hits! The action is tense, the cinematography is dynamic, and the pacing is measured, bordering on blazing. Do you know what makes an explosion feel more real? If it just fucking happens, no slo-mo, no score sting.
The Pentagon has screened this movie to help commanders and troops better understand the guerilla warfare they faced in occupied Iraq.
It’s rare to see a movie that acts as such a benchmark for filmmaking—this one changed movies from then on.