If you live in New York City, you have until Thursday January 29, 2004 to see this movie at the Film Forum. Do so. The Battle of Algiers is easily one of the most powerful and moving movies that I have ever seen. Ironically, it is perhaps more timely today, with our current occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan and the conflict in Israel, than when it was made in 1965.
The Battle of Algiers tells the story of the resistance movement in Algiers from 1954 to 1962 (mostly focusing on the events from ’54 to ’57) against 130 years of French colonialism. It is an utterly astonishing piece of filmmaking. Commissioned by the Algerian government, it shows an amazingly balanced point of view and won numerous international awards when initially released. This re-release apparently significantly improves the sub-titling from the original U.S. release.