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Licensor
Casbah Films
Directed by: Gillo Pontecorvo
Featuring: Brahim Haggiag, Jean Martin, Saadi Yacef, Samia Kerbash, Fusia El Kader, Ugo Paletti, Mohamed Ben Kassen
One of the most influential political films in history, The Battle of Algiers, by Gillo Pontecorvo, vividly re-creates a key year in the tumultuous Algerian struggle for independence from the occupying French in the 1950s. As violence escalates on both sides, children shoot soldiers at point-blank range, women plant bombs in cafés, and French soldiers resort to torture to break the will of the insurgents. Shot on the streets of Algiers in documentary style, the film is a case study in modern warfare, with its terrorist attacks and the brutal techniques used to combat them. Pontecorvo’s tour de force has astonishing relevance today.
Technical Specifications
Format: Blu-ray
Aspect Ratio:
1.85:1
Audio:
French 1.0 PCM Mono
Resolution:
Subtitles:
English
Region:
A
Discs:
2 Discs |
BD-50
Supplements
- Gillo Pontecorvo: The Dictatorship of Truth, a documentary narrated by literary critic Edward Said
- Marxist Poetry: The Making of “The Battle of Algiers,” a documentary featuring interviews with Gillo Pontecorvo, Marcello Gatti, composer Ennio Morricone, and others
- Interviews with Spike Lee, Mira Nair, Julian Schnabel, Steven Soderbergh, and Oliver Stone on the film’s influence, style, and importance
- Remembering History, a documentary reconstructing the Algerian experience of the battle for independence
- “États d’armes,” a documentary excerpt featuring senior French military officers recalling the use of torture and execution to combat the Algerian rebellion
- "The Battle of Algiers”: A Case Study, a video piece featuring U.S. counterterrorism experts
- Gillo Pontecorvo’s Return to Algiers, a documentary in which the filmmaker revisits the country after three decades of independence
- Production gallery
- Theatrical and rerelease trailers
- A booklet featuring a new essay by film scholar Peter Matthews, excerpts from Algeria’s National Liberation Front leader Saadi Yacef’s original account of his arrest, excerpts from the film’s screenplay, a reprinted interview with cowriter Franco Solinas, and biographical sketches of key figures in the French-Algerian War
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Supplements
Artwork
Release Credits
Producer: Kim Hendrickson
Artwork: Neil Kellerhouse
Producer: Abbey Lustgarten
Restoration Information
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