Algeria in Flames

Algeria in Flames

1958 · 22 min · ★ 8.5 · Documentary, War

These are the first images shot in the ALN maquis, camera in hand, at the end of 1956 and in 1957. These war images taken in the Aurès-Nementchas are intended to be the basis of a dialogue between French and Algerians for peace in Algeria, by demonstrating the existence of an armed organization close to the people. Three versions of Algeria in Flames are produced: French, German and Arabic. From the end of the editing, the film circulates without any cuts throughout the world, except in France where the first screening takes place in the occupied Sorbonne in 1968. Certain images of the film have circulated and are found in films, in particular Algerian films. Because of the excitement caused by this film, he was forced to go into hiding for 25 months. After the declaration of independence, he founded the first Algerian Audiovisual Center.

Directed by René Vautier · Written by René Vautier

Your Rating

Cast

Make it a double feature

28m together

Algeria in Flames

The Death Knell

Both from René Vautier.

More from René VautierSee all →

The Sorcerer's ApprenticeThe Sorcerer's Apprentice · 1996
The Sorcerer's Apprentice
10.01996
MovieDocumentaryDrama
60 years ago, in the Algerian desert, an atomic bomb, equivalent to three or even four times Hiroshima, exploded. Named the “Blue Gerboise”, it was the first atomic bomb tested by France, and of hitherto unrivaled power. This 70 kiloton plutonium bomb was launched in the early morning, in the Reggane region, in southern Algeria, during the French colonial era. If this test allowed France to become the 4th nuclear power in the world, it had catastrophic repercussions. France had, at the time, certified that the radiation was well below the standard safety threshold. However, in 2013, declassified files revealed that the level of radioactivity had been much higher than announced, and had been recorded from West Africa to the south of Spain.
LumièresLumières · 1989
Lumières
10.01989
MovieComedyDrama
Long quest for a director specializing in commissioned films, who after a depression rediscovers his loved ones, his Casbah district, himself. Taken in hand, for a while, by his Islamist neighbor, it is above all the meeting with an old projectionist giving him a censored history of cinema and Algeria, which helps him to change, and to accept his own fantasies, embodied by Marilyn Monroe and the Andalusian.
The Death KnellThe Death Knell · 1964
The Death Knell
10.01964
MovieDocumentary
At the beginning of the 1960s, in Salisbury (now Harare), in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), the government of Ian Smith hanged three black revolutionaries who had nevertheless been pardoned by the Queen of England. René Vautier, with ZAPU (Zimbabwe African Party for Unity), denounces this killing. Expelled by the Rhodesian police (informed by the French secret services), the filmmaker shoots a film in Algeria in the form of an indictment against colonial savagery. The film was first banned in France, then authorized in 1965.
Four Days of a PartisanFour Days of a Partisan · 1975
Four Days of a Partisan
10.01975
MovieScience Fiction
2039... A third world war on every continent... Isolated in an old building with his partner, a young man refuses to seek shelter during an alert. He rejects all historical awareness. But tragic circumstances will decide otherwise. Day One: BEYOND THE WIND. Day Two: VERTICAL COMBAT. Day Three: HORIZONTAL COMBAT. 2045. Day Four: BEYOND THE WIND.
Quand tu disais, ValéryQuand tu disais, Valéry · 1976
Quand tu disais, Valéry
9.51976
MovieDocumentary
Divided into five parts, this film traces the long strike by workers at the Caravelair caravan factory in Trigniac, near Saint-Nazaire, led by the C.G.T. and C.F.D.T. unions. Shot in 1975, the film achieved the strange feat of being produced entirely by workers' producers - 15,000 of them paid in advance for their tickets - and of being amortized, and even made profitable, by being shown outside the commercial circuit alone.
Commune présenceCommune présence · 2008
Commune présence
9.02008
MovieDocumentary
Guided by a letter from an childhood friend, a young man visits places and people from the past marked by history and commitment. He then meets other people throughout the night, looking for ways to act and imagine collectively.
Des goûts et des couleursDes goûts et des couleurs · 1974
Des goûts et des couleurs
9.01974
MovieDrama
The owner of a luxurious yacht seduces attractive women to deliver them to a black crew member.
Déjà le sang de mai ensemençait novembreDéjà le sang de mai ensemençait novembre · 1982
Déjà le sang de mai ensemençait novembre
9.01982
MovieDocumentary
The essay by René Vautier, "Déjà le sang de Mai ensemençait Novembre", starts with the recapitulation of the representations of Algeria throughout the history of visual arts in France in an effort to explore the causes for the quest for independence.
Le RemordsLe Remords · 1974
Le Remords
9.01974
MovieDrama
A filmmaker witnesses an act of racist police violence in Paris. He discusses with a friend whether and how he should make a film out of this.
Le poisson commande...Le poisson commande... · 1976
Le poisson commande...
9.01976
MovieDocumentary
When the three popes of militant film in Brittany, grouped together in the Union of Breton Film Production (UPCB), respond with talent to an order from fishermen's bosses... Le poisson commande includes some very beautiful images of the work at sea, as well as being an apology for industrial fishing. People of Lorient will be able to discover a fishing port then in full activity.
The Madwoman of ToujaneThe Madwoman of Toujane · 1974
The Madwoman of Toujane
8.71974
MovieDrama
This rambling political melodrama tells the story of a French Breton who learns about colonialism while teaching native students in France's colonies of Tunisia and Algeria and returns to his native Brittany to see that the same conditions prevail there.
Les AjoncsLes Ajoncs · 1970
Les Ajoncs
8.51970
MovieComedyAdventure
An unemployed Algerian worker leaves Paris by hitchhiking. He soon found himself in Brittany and, seduced by the beauty of wild gorse, eventually established himself as a gorse merchant. But for problems with parking his little cart, he had a rough explanation with a law enforcement officer. The happy intervention of factory workers, the eager kindness they showed him, saved him from despair. This film is part of a trilogy "Them And Us" with the films "Les 3 Cousins" and "Techniquement Si Simple".
Techniquement Si SimpleTechniquement Si Simple · 1971
Techniquement Si Simple
8.31971
MovieHistoryDrama
Les Trois CousinsLes Trois Cousins · 1970
Les Trois Cousins
8.01970
MovieDramaComedy
The Three Cousins ​​is a comedy-drama by René Vautier released in 1970 about the living conditions of three Algerian immigrant cousins ​​looking for work in Paris. Housed in a narrow construction shed, the coal stove will cause them to suffocate. The Three Cousins ​​won the Best Human Rights Film Award in Strasbourg in 1970.
To Be Twenty in the AuresTo Be Twenty in the Aures · 1972
To Be Twenty in the Aures
7.61972
MovieDramaWar
A group of refractory and pacifist Bretons is sent to Algeria. These beings confronted with the horrors of war gradually become killing machines. One of them did not accept it and deserted, taking with him an FLN prisoner who was to be executed the next day.
Les Anneaux d'OrLes Anneaux d'Or · 1956
Les Anneaux d'Or
7.51956
MovieDocumentaryHistory
At the time of Tunisian independence, owners of large boats decide to sell, while many small fishermen soon find themselves without work. Their wives then decide to pool their gold rings to sell them and thus buy boats.

More Like This

Au Revoir les EnfantsAu Revoir les Enfants · 1987
Au Revoir les Enfants
7.51987
MovieDramaWar
Au revoir les enfants tells a heartbreaking story of friendship and devastating loss concerning two boys living in Nazi-occupied France. At a provincial Catholic boarding school, the precocious youths enjoy true camaraderie—until a secret is revealed. Based on events from writer-director Malle’s own childhood, the film is a subtle, precisely observed tale of courage, cowardice, and tragic awakening.
The PianistThe Pianist · 2002
The Pianist
8.42002
MovieDramaWar
The true story of pianist Władysław Szpilman's experiences in Warsaw during the Nazi occupation. When the Jews of the city find themselves forced into a ghetto, Szpilman finds work playing in a café; and when his family is deported in 1942, he stays behind, works for a while as a laborer, and eventually goes into hiding in the ruins of the war-torn city.
Female AgentsFemale Agents · 2008
Female Agents
6.62008
MovieWarHistory
May 1944, a group of French servicewomen and resistance fighters are enlisted into the British Special Operations Executive commando group under the command of Louise Desfontaines and her brother Pierre. Their mission, to rescue a British army geologist caught reconnoitering the beaches at Normandy.
The Wind That Shakes the BarleyThe Wind That Shakes the Barley · 2006
The Wind That Shakes the Barley
7.32006
MovieDramaWar
In 1920s Ireland young doctor Damien O'Donovan prepares to depart for a new job in a London hospital. As he says his goodbyes at a friend's farm, British Black and Tans arrive, and a young man is killed. Damien joins his brother Teddy in the Irish Republican Army, but political events are soon set in motion that tear the brothers apart.
Pan's LabyrinthPan's Labyrinth · 2006
Pan's Labyrinth
7.82006
MovieFantasyDrama
In post–civil war Spain, 10-year-old Ofelia moves with her pregnant mother to live under the control of her cruel stepfather. Drawn into a mysterious labyrinth, she meets a faun who reveals that she may be a lost princess from an underground kingdom. To return to her true father, she must complete a series of surreal and perilous tasks that blur the line between reality and fantasy.
The Bridge on the River KwaiThe Bridge on the River Kwai · 1957
The Bridge on the River Kwai
7.81957
MovieDramaHistory
The classic story of English POWs in Burma forced to build a bridge to aid the war effort of their Japanese captors. British and American intelligence officers conspire to blow up the structure, but Col. Nicholson, the commander who supervised the bridge's construction, has acquired a sense of pride in his creation and tries to foil their plans.
When We Were KingsWhen We Were Kings · 1996
When We Were Kings
7.61996
MovieDocumentary
It's 1974. Muhammad Ali is 32 and thought by many to be past his prime. George Foreman is ten years younger and the heavyweight champion of the world. Promoter Don King wants to make a name for himself and offers both fighters five million dollars apiece to fight one another, and when they accept, King has only to come up with the money. He finds a willing backer in Mobutu Sese Suko, the dictator of Zaire, and the "Rumble in the Jungle" is set, including a musical festival featuring some of America's top black performers, like James Brown and B.B. King.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter