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I didn't know anything about this movie and saw this movie without any expectations and was totally blown away by this movie.This movie is a tour de force both visualy and musicaly.There will never be a better movie than this on resistance and counter resistence.

If you like political movies.This movie is a MUST.This movie is about algierian resistance to french occupation. Told through the eyes of one of the FLN(Algerian resistance group) commander La pointe, this movie tells the true story of the resistance movement in a stunning way.

Innovative narration, brilliant background score, awesome editing and photography combined with some nice acting, makes this movie stand apart. The movie is not a straight forward narration of a freedom struggle with one hero but it is about many people and many incidents weaved through some awesome editing. The dialogues are very minimal and also to the point and sharp. This movie is considered as one of the kind and was an international hit.To give you an idea of how important this movie is, it won the golden lion in venice beating movies like Bresson's "Au hasard Balthazar" and François Truffaut's "Farenheit 451".A movie that beat bresson's Au hasard Balthazar,well that should be enough to tell you about this movie.

This movie does not have any big sentimental scenes or patriotic stuff. Its just the events told in a pacy style. The BGMs adds so much to the movie that when you think back the movie you cannot think the visuals without the audio. There is whole rhythm to the movie.



The director has captured a nation's history in a powerful and moving way.It is like reading a Dominique Lapierre, Larry Collins book about the activities of the FLN in algeirs.In the middle of the movie I questioned myself whether all these scenes where taken of rthe movie or was it some documentary clippings that where shot during the resistance movement.But to my amazement i later confirmed that every single shot is taken for the movie.It was so unbelievable.There isn't a single scene that will give you an idea that the actors or for that matter the crowd was acting for the film.


The movie, even though shot 40 years before is still relevant today.Pentagon screened this movie in 2003 to its officers to teach them on what they might expect in iraq.And you know what, in the movie if you replace algeirs by iraq you can get a picture of what is happening in iraq now.

This movie was banned in france for 4 years because it showed the french in bad light.Yes the movie takes the algerian side but it is not completely one sided, the movie actually raises above the french occupation and narrates things more as a general opposition to colonization.



The Director of this movie is Gillo Pontecorvo, an italian director.He has taken very few movies and this one has gone down as a classic.I loved the movie, i ordered the bonus material separately and found out more about this guy, my guess came true, he was a marxist.He is a man who fought with italy's communist resistance against the facist.His resistance experience had definitely helped him in making the movie.The movie have 2 bonus material DVD's one has interviews by mira nair,oliver stone,spike lee,Steven Soderbergh ,Julian Schnabel and the director himself the other one is interview with former counterterrorism officials Richard A. Clarke and Michael A. Sheehan.

Watch it, it is awesome.

Links
FLN