The Battle of Algiers (1966)

2h 2m · Directed by Gillo Pontecorvo

Starring Brahim Hadjadj, Mohamed Ben Kassen, Yacef Saâdi, Fouzia El Kader, Hadj Smaine Mohamed Seghir

Paratrooper commander Colonel Mathieu, a former French Resistance fighter during World War II, is sent to Algeria to reinforce efforts to squelch the uprisings of the Algerian War. There he faces Ali la Pointe, a former petty criminal who, as the leader of the Algerian Front de Liberation Nationale, directs terror strategies against the colonial French government occupation. As each side resorts to ever-increasing brutality, no violent act is too unthinkable.