La battaglia di Algeri (1966)

Director:

Gillo Pontecorvo

Writers:

Gillo Pontecorvo (writer)
Franco Solinas (writer)

Release Date:

20 September 1967 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | War

Tagline:

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!

Plot:

An account of the bloodiest revolution in modern history.

Plot Keywords:

Algerian | French | Bomb | Independence | Revolution

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 7 wins

Cast

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

Directed by
Gillo Pontecorvo

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Gillo Pontecorvo		writer
Franco Solinas		writer

Produced by
Antonio Musu	....	producer
Yacef Saadi	....	producer
Fred Baker	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Ennio Morricone
Gillo Pontecorvo

Cinematography by
Marcello Gatti

Film Editing by
Mario Morra
Mario Serandrei

Production Design by
Sergio Canevari

Set Decoration by
Sergio Canevari

Costume Design by
Giovanni Axerio		(uncredited)

Makeup Department
Maurizio Giustini	....	key makeup artist
Hamdi Mohamed	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Nour Eddine Brahimi	....	production manager
Lakhdar-Toumi Edine	....	production supervisor
Abdenour Essed	....	production supervisor
Sergio Merolle	....	production manager
Rolando Pieri	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Moussa Haddad	....	second assistant director
Giuliano Montaldo	....	second unit director
Fernando Morandi	....	assistant director

Art Department
Tarcisio Diamanti	....	construction coordinator (uncredited)

Sound Department
Alberto Bartolomei	....	sound synchronisation
Omar Bouksani	....	sound technician

Special Effects by
Aldo Gasparri	....	special effects (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Belkacem Bazi	....	assistant camera
Nazzareno Belardinelli	....	gaffer
Silvano Mancini	....	camera operator
Alfredo Marchetti	....	key grip
Ali Maroc	....	assistant camera
Claudio Racca	....	camera operator: second unit

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Giovanni Axerio	....	wardrobe

Editorial Department
Lina Caterini	....	second assistant editor
Anna Maria Montanari	....	first assistant editor

Music Department
Bruno Nicolai	....	conductor

Other crew
Margherita Autuori	....	unit publicist (as Rossetti)
Alfredo Di Santo	....	production secretary
Alfredo Di Santo	....	script supervisor
Enrico Lucherini	....	unit publicist (as Lucherini)
Mario Maestrelli	....	administrator
Matteo Spinola	....	unit publicist (as Spinola)

Production Companies

• Igor Film
• Casbah Film (co-production)

Distributors

• Argent Films (2003) (UK) (all media)
• Maiden Voyage Pictures (2007) (UK) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Rialto Pictures (2004) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Rizzoli (1967) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Criterion Collection, The (2004) (USA) (DVD) (widescreen)
• Encore Entertainment (1995) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Globo Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Image Entertainment (????) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Madman Entertainment (2005) (Australia) (DVD)
• Madman Entertainment (2005) (New Zealand) (DVD)
• New Star (2009) (Greece) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Warmflash Productions Ltd.  trailer

Also Known As:

The Battle of Algiers (UK) (USA)
Maarakat madinat al Jazaer (Algeria: Arabic title)

Runtime:

121 min

Country:

Italy | Algeria

Language:

Italian | French | English | Arabic

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Brazil:14 | Norway:16 | USA:Not Rated | South Korea:15 | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Finland:K-16 | France:(Banned) (1965-1971) | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (video rating) (1993) | UK:X (original rating) | West Germany:16 | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Algeria

Company:

Igor Film

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:

Continuity: The foot responsible for tripping Ali when running down the street changes from the right to the left foot between cuts.

Quotes:

Col. Mathieu: We aren't madmen or sadists, gentlemen. Those who call us Fascists today, forget the contribution that many of us made to the Resistance. Those who call us Nazis, don't know that among us there are survivors of Dachau and Buchenwald. We are soldiers and our only duty is to win.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The 100 Greatest War Films (2005) (TV)

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.