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One of the most influential films in the history of political cinema, Gillo Pontecorvo's The Battle of Algiers focuses on the harrowing events of 1957, a key year in Algeria's struggle for independence from France. Shot in the streets of Algiers in documentary style, the film vividly recreates the tumultuous Algerian uprising against the occupying French in the 1950s. As violence escalates on both sides, the French torture prisoners for information and the Algerians resort to terrorism in their quest for independence. Children shoot soldiers at point-blank range, women plant bombs in cafés. The French win the battle, but ultimately lose the war as the Algerian people demonstrate that they will no longer be suppressed. The Criterion Collection is proud present Gillo Pontecorvo's tour de force?a film with astonishing relevance today.
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Features:
| Disc 1: The Battle of Algiers:
New high-definition digital transfer, supervised by cinematographer Marcello Gratti, with restored image and sound, and enhanced for widescreen televisions
Theatrical and re-release trailers
Poster gallery
New and improved English subtitle translation
Disc 2: Pontecorvo and the Film:
The Making of The Battle of Algiers: An exclusive new documentary created for this release guided by Pontecorvo biographer Irene Bignardi and featuring interviews with the director himself, cinematographer Marcello Gatti, composer Ennio Morricone, editor Mario Morra, actors Jean Martin and Saadi Yacef, and film critic Tullio Kezich
The Dictatorship of Truth: A 37-minute documentary narrated by Edward Said about the relationship between Pontecorvo’s politics and filmmaking style
Directors on The Battle of Algiers: A discussion about the film’s influence, style, and importance featuring Spike Lee, Mira Nair, Julian Schnabel, Steven Soderbergh, and Oliver Stone
Disc 3: The Film and History:
The Battle of Algiers and History: A new documentary featuring interviews with historians Alistair Horne, Hugh Roberts, and Benjamin Stora; former FLN members Zohra Drif-Bitat, Mohammed Harbi. and Saadi Yacef; and writer and torture victim, Henri Alleg
"Etats d’Armies": A 30-minute excerpt from Patrick Rotman’s three-part documentary, L’Ennemi intime, which focuses on the horror of the French-Algerian War. It features interviews with various members of the French military during the French-Algerian War, including General Jacques Massu, General Roger Trinquier, General Paul Aussaresses, and others
Return to Algiers (1992, 55 minutes): Three decades following its emergence as a nation, director Gillo Pontecorvo and his son return to Algeria to talk with its people about independence
The Battle of Algiers: A Case Study (25 mins., 2004): A conversation about the contemporary relevance of The Battle of Algiers between former National Coordinator for Security and Counterterrorism and author of Against All Enemies: Inside America’s War on Terror, Richard A. Clarke; former State Department Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Michael A. Sheehan; and Chief of Investigative Projects for ABC News, Christopher E. Isham
Plus:
A 56-booklet featuring a new essay by film scholar Peter Matthews, a reprinted interview with writer Franco Solinas, brief biographies on the key figures in the French-Algerian War, and more
| Video:
| | Widescreen 1.85:1 B&W (Anamorphic) | | Audio: (more info) | FRENCH: Dolby Digital Mono
ARABIC: Dolby Digital Mono
| Subtitles:
| | English
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| Studio: Criterion
Production Year: 1965
Release Date: 10/12/2004
Length: 125 mins
Rating: NR
Chapters: 35
| Packaging: Custom Case
Number of Discs: 3
Disc: SS-DL
Item Code: BAT120
UPC Code: 037429195628
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