La Battaglia Di Algeri (aka The Battle Of Algiers) (1966)

Set in French occupied Algeria from 1954 to 1957 when the National Liberation Front attempts to destroy the French Colonialism which has a hold on the city of Algiers with the eventual goal of independence from France. Based on the memoir SOUVENIRS DE LA BATAILLE D'ALGER by Saadi Yacef and directed by Gillo Pontecorvo (BURN). Shot in grainy B&W 16 millimeter with a cast of non professional actors (Jean Martin as a French colonel being an exception), the film has a documentary look and feel to it. Pontecorvo received two Oscar nominations for this film, best director and best screenplay (shared by Franco Solinas). It's an amazing influential film that looks at the fine line between revolutionaries and terrorists. Clearly Pontecorvo is on the side of the oppressed Algerians who want the invading foreign power to leave so they can rule their own country. It took two years to be released in France because of pressure from right wing groups and veterans' groups. The film was highly influential in two ways. Its influence on film makers like Stanley Kubrick, Spike Lee and Costa Gavras among others and its influence on political groups like the Black Panthers, Palestinian Liberation Organization and the Irish Republican Army among others. A must for fans of cinema. With Saadi Yacef, Brahim Haggiag and Samia Kerbash.