Absolutely the worst movie.

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

This is a film based on true events - the war between France and the Algerian National Liberation Front from 1954 to 1962, which led to Algeria gaining its independence from France. An important decolonization war, it was a complex conflict characterized by guerrilla warfare, maquis fighting, and the use of torture by both sides. The Battle of Algiers remains to this day an important film associated with Italian neo-realism cinema. A failure to win "hearts and minds" it was considered as important material by some in the consideration of the outcome of a War on Terror in Iraq and perhaps even highly prescient. It is a highly dramatic film shot in a documentary reel style with non-actors. While banned for five years in France it now is considered one of the great films of the 20th Century. Its achievement is not only its power of storyline and narrative but the effect of appearing as truth stylistically. No stock news footage is used which is astonishing for the realism it succeeded in depicting. Its value has increased from a historical point of view because those involved with the actual skirmishes and conflict will no doubt have seen the film differently in 1966.

A really well made and fascinating film about the beginning of the big anti-imperialist war that took place Algeria against France. A conflict which would be incredibly contentious war in France, especially in regard to torture of enemy militants. This film is really well done about what is essentially a terrorist group in Algiers fighting for their freedom against their French oppressors. While I think this group is largely sympathetic they also commit some fairly grotesque acts towards French people living in Algiers. In terms of filmmaking this makes the dynamic between the French forces and insurgent group very interesting.

EXCELLENT, PROPHETIC MOVIE !!!Released in 1967, this movie provides a clear insight into the roots of Islamic "radicalization" as a reaction against the poverty, exploitation, corruption, and degradation caused by colonialism.Several shocking ideas (for a film from 1956):1. A large group of seven-year-old boys beat a drunk to death to "improve their community"2. French police take vigilante justice against an innocent man's family by exploding his home late one night3. Revenge bombings by Muslim females of an Air France flight and two cafés (not suicide bombings, incidentally)4. French military uses waterboarding (I kid you not) and other tortures to extract information, "false flag" events (World Trade Center, anyone?) to justify circumventing laws, and "suicides" to eliminate "non-cooperative" rebel leaders.5. The United Nations, as usual, is impotent.Combined with any good documentaries about the history of African-Americans and the history of Native Americans, an astute viewer comes to the realization that Europeans are the devils who have brought misery to peaceful people throughout the world.

Independence, Rebellion, Guerrilla warfare, military exercise, propaganda, state sponsored torture, clashes between local civilians and foreign tyrants. This may have been the history of most developing countries in the world. India can be a bright example. But, I have not seen a finer depiction of a rebellion for independence than this movie. I would rate it along with Battleship Potemkin, as the best propaganda movie, I have ever seen. The specialty of this movie is the way it is filmed. Black and white cinematography which also gives the impression of a documentary. I really thought, I was watching a documentary in History Channel than an actual movie. Editing is crisp as well, which really helps in not lingering in the death scenes which is the case in many other movies. The movie does not have a single protagonist or antagonist which according to me is the victory of the movie.I am so glad I watched this movie as not only a part of movie history, but a part of world history as well.Rating : 9/10