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La Battaglia di Algeri (The Battle of Algiers) (1966)

tomatometer

99

Average Rating: 9/10
Reviews Counted: 76
Fresh: 75 | Rotten: 1

A powerful, documentary-like examination of the response to an occupying force, The Battle of Algiers hasn't aged a bit since its release in 1966.

100

Average Rating: 9/10
Critic Reviews: 22
Fresh: 22 | Rotten: 0

A powerful, documentary-like examination of the response to an occupying force, The Battle of Algiers hasn't aged a bit since its release in 1966.

audience

94

liked it
Average Rating: 4.4/5
User Ratings: 13,222

My Rating

Movie Info

This highly political film about the Algerian struggle for independence from France took "Best Film" honors at the 1966 Venice Film Festival. The bulk of the film is shot in flashback, presented as the memories of Ali (Brahim Haggiag), a leading member of the Algerian Front de Liberation Nationale (FLN), when finally captured by the French in 1957. Three years earlier, Ali was a petty thief who joined the secretive organization in order to help rid the Casbah of vice associated with the colonial

Sep 21, 2004

$0.2M

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Cast

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All Critics (76) | Top Critics (22) | Fresh (83) | Rotten (1) | DVD (23)

Essential viewing.

July 3, 2012 Full Review Source: Time Out New York
Time Out New York
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Both a how-to manual for guerrilla terrorism and a cautionary tale about how to fight it. It's also quite possibly the finest war film ever made.

August 4, 2011 Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
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It's a dedicated effort with importance as a 'document.'

October 18, 2008 Full Review Source: Variety
Variety
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Superb and unrivalled.

January 26, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out
Time Out
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What lessons a modern viewer can gain from the film depends on who is watching and what they want to see.

October 23, 2004 Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

It's as fresh and suspenseful as anything before or since.

October 19, 2004 Full Review Source: CNN.com
CNN.com
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Its content has classic and tragic dimensions beyond politics.

January 18, 2013 Full Review Source: The Nation
The Nation

The film establishes a kinetic documentary effect, making the impact of every shoot-out and explosion a deeply personal experience.

July 1, 2012 Full Review Source: Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine

This seminal. meticulously crafted work about Algiers struggle for freedom won the Venic Film Fest top award, and deservedly garnered Pontecorvo Oscar nominations as Best Director and Co-scribe.

March 24, 2012 Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com
EmanuelLevy.Com

Partially because of its documentary style, used so effectively by director Gillo Pontecorvo, it never gets heavy-handed -- exploring the idea of violence as a necessary evil for freedom.

October 27, 2011 Full Review Source: Scene-Stealers.com
Scene-Stealers.com

Powder-keg cinema at its finest, The Battle of Algiers storms the Blu-ray aisles with just as much anger, brutality, and complexity as it did theatrically 45 years ago.

August 9, 2011 Full Review Source: Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine

"The Battle Of Algiers" is a one of a kind masterpiece of pure cinema that you will never forget.

April 26, 2009 Full Review Source: ColeSmithey.com
ColeSmithey.com

It's a frank blend of exoticism, eroticism and foreshadowed horror.

October 18, 2008 Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile
Urban Cinefile

One of the essential works of world cinema.

March 10, 2008 Full Review Source: Antagony & Ecstasy
Antagony & Ecstasy

The inspiration and blueprint for docudrama and ideological cinema worldwide.

June 21, 2007 Full Review Source: WBAI Web Radio
WBAI Web Radio

A riveting reconstruction of the struggle for independence in mid-50s Algiers, its pseudo-documentary style still feels as headline-fresh as its content.

May 15, 2007 Full Review Source: BBC

Gillo Pontecorvo's epic of revolutionary fervour has dimmed not an iota since it was first released in 1966.

May 11, 2007 Full Review Source: Independent

Forty years on, the film's lost not a fraction of its power.

May 11, 2007 Full Review Source: Total Film
Total Film

Faux-documentary masterpiece

May 11, 2007 Full Review Source: Daily Telegraph
Daily Telegraph

Whatever they made of The Battle of Algiers at the Pentagon, this is a must-see for everyone else now.

May 11, 2007 Full Review Source: Guardian [UK]
Guardian [UK]

Brilliantly directed set-pieces and remarkable thronging crowd scenes make the film a masterpiece; the ominous familiarity of its subject makes it a must-see.

May 11, 2007 Full Review Source: Times [UK]
Times [UK]

Audience Reviews for La Battaglia di Algeri (The Battle of Algiers)

Absolutely riveting. There seem to always be a batch of films that no matter how old they are, they never lose their edge. The Battle of Algiers is one of those impressive works. From a filmmaking standpoint, it commands every ounce of your attention span. The camera work is so smart and compounds the blistering tension that invades every scene. This coupled with Morricone's invasive yet impeccable score never gives you a moments rest, even when you know what is going to take place.
I think what makes this film so powerful is the fact that Pontecorvo was able to encompass not only the power and emotion behind a revolutionary movement, but also show the confusion, sorrow, and often senseless violence that are the by-product of these movements.
Also, It was hard not to make modern day parallels to the occupation of Iraq. Watching these French officials attempt to find order and use their minds to fight an "enemy" who is empowered by their hearts, made me rethink every time I saw an American general on television discussing their efforts in stifling the revolutionary movement. It is a rare and brilliant film and is a must watch for any fans of film.
August 17, 2011
axadntpron
Reid Volk

Super Reviewer

It's been said that movies, unlike any other art form, transcend space and time and transport us somewhere else. Movies can promote empathy and can make us concerned with lives that are not our own. Some movies, the really good ones, can even make us better people. The Battle of Algiers is one of those movies.

Based on the true story of Algeria's long struggle for independence, this film chronicles a group of freedom fighters (terrorists) as they attempt to overthrow the French Colonial Government. In it's initial release, The Battle of Algiers hit a little too close to home for Americans who were still wallowing through the muck of their own occupation of Vietnam. I'd wager that, if it were released today, it would have the same effect. It's powerful and brutally honest in its depiction of street warfare. A rare offering that is completely deserving of all the hype.
January 17, 2009
flixsterman
Randy Tippy

Super Reviewer

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Foreign Titles

  • Schlacht um Algier (DE)
  • The Battle of Algiers (La Battaglia di Algeri) (1966) (UK)
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