How Wonderful to Die Assassinated

In 1964, Algeria, just two years after the end of the war of independence, found itself catapulted into new contradictions, a still rural territory which responded to the modernity brought by the revolution. Filmed during the winter of 1964-1965 by the young director Ennio Lorenzini, it is the first international Algerian production which paints a rare portrait in color of a multifaceted nation, far from the simplistic vision created by the press and the French army. Produced by Casbah Film, Les Mains Libres (initially titled Tronc De Figuier) bears witness to the stigmata of colonization and the future of free Algeria throughout the Algerian territory and reveals the richness of its landscapes and the diversity of its traditions . The documentary, using the aesthetics of militant cinema of the time, is made up of four scenes: Sea and Desert, The Struggle, The Earth, Freedom.

The life of the Lucan peasant faces not only atavistic poverty, but also the ferocity of nature. When bad weather rages, the hard-won shelters are at risk of being destroyed by landslides. The only thing to do is to leave home, hoping to find it intact on the way back.

Produced within the framework of the “Programmi Sperimentali” of Italian public television (structure of the RAI which allowed, in the 1970s, the production of films such as Lutte en Italie by the Dziga Vertov Group, Cancer by Glauber Rocha or Perché pagare per essere felici by Marco Ferreri), Cronaca di un gruppo tells the story of a group of young French revolutionaries who, between Paris and the Pyrenees region, are looking for ways to continue their political activities, through the theater experimental and counter-information, the day after May 68. Produced in collaboration with Gianni Toti, Didier Sandre and the Nanterre experimental theater group.