After viewing the film I can definitely see how earlier audiences could have believed that this was a documentary and that what they were seeing was truly real. Besides the fact that the camera crew was operating with news reel for filming, everything about the movie looked very real. The fact that they did not concentrate so hard on a single character and rather on a group of people made it seem more realistic because that kept putting the audience in a place where they did not have all the information. There were also many scenes through out the film that were wide general shots and did not focus on a single place but rather a group of people which could easily be mistaken for a camera crew filming regular life in Algiers and not something that was scripted. Most the meetings that Colonel Mathieu held with the rest of his paratroopers looked like a camera placed in the back and filmed the meeting as if the soldiers were being documented, and not a scripted scene. The scene that really must have thrown the audience was surely the entire final scene. In the grand ending, Pontecorvo used actual citizens of Algiers in the riot scenes to reach the maximum realism that could have occurred in the event of an actual riot. The spirit of Algiers that these people portrayed could only be achieved with the effort of actual citizens that have experienced the real event.

We’ve been discussing the importance of media as a form of accessible communication that transcends linguistic and cultural barriers. I wanted to address the topic of media being used as a form of terrorism. In the past few months ISIS has been releasing a slew of videos showing the killing of captured American, British and Japanese citizens. These videos have become increasingly professional in the way that they are edited and produced. In a recent video release from ISIS, where they light a captured pilot on fire inside of a cage, the editing shown is of noteworthy sophistication. There are multiple fades and cuts that correspond to the sound track, along with subtitles and captions and other filming techniques. This illustrates the readily accessible nature of modern media, as well as the ease with which this kind of viral terrorist video can be spread.

We like to think that people willing to commit such disgusting, inhuman acts are primitive and unintelligent. It helps us come to terms with the fact that humans can carry out such atrocities on one another. Surely ISIS and similar organizations are blinded by their misguided efforts to follow their religion, as well as the inherently hateful nature of what they believe is a correct interpretation of Islam. However, these recent video releases suggest the opposite. They appear much more sophisticated than the average youtube video made on iMovie. I’m sure that with practice this kind of filming is accessible to anyone who is sufficiently motivated. At the same time, however, the more recent videos have been reminiscent of popular action movies in their somewhat sophisticated filming and editing techniques. Now that we are in a world that is connected by the internet, acts of terrorism such as these are likely to become more prevalent. Nations attempting to extinguish organizations like ISIS will have to create new strategies to combat a generation of terrorists who are using Facebook and YouTube alongside their violent acts of terrorism and radicalized political agendas.

This post is mainly concerned with the color and music in the movie the Battle of Algiers. First off, I want to pose a question: What effect does the black and white have on the movie in general? Does it add to the emotional experience? Does it add drama? I believe that the two colors (black and white) do something very interesting: it doesn’t cause distraction. In some movies, the mix of colors can be distracting to the scenes. I think the fact that this movie is only black and white makes the audience really focus in on what is happening. Second, I want to comment on the music in the movie. I think the music was my favorite aspect throughout the entire movie. There were several scenes where the music added an element, like suspense. In a movie where there are limited things occurring, suspense really gave the movie a “kick” it needed.

Ride Audio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cUJbbB4kOk

Ride Visuals: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFsd4xJKLEQ

I know that this doesn’t really apply to the films we’ve been watching, but this week’s chapter in The Age of the Image “What is Literacy” really reminded me of Spaceship Earth while I was reading it.

The chapter was essentially an interesting history lesson on the evolution of communication, from cave paintings and monosyllables to modern technology and complex languages. It touched on a variety of world cultures, from Rome and Ancient Egypt, to the Renaissance and even the 20th century. The whole time though I kept thinking of Spaceship Earth, the giant globe ride in Epcot Disney World, which basically covers the same information (albeit with more animatronics and Disney magic).

Both are enormous testaments to the power of communication and truly solidify the view that we humans are very much “storytelling animals.” If we weren’t, then this blog (and the books we read and the movies we watch) wouldn’t exist.

I thought the music added special emotion to a few scenes, especially because it is a black and white film. Throughout the film, the music helped to add to each scene, conveying great sadness, as is the case for the scene after the bomb set by the police went off and you saw the children’s bodies. Or when the women were doing their makeup and the fast paced battle march set your teeth on edge and got your heart pumping faster. The effect of these various musical scores added to the movie in a very potent manner, and played a large role in the films emotional takeaway. Think of how you felt when the carefree dance music was playing in the parlor, all the while knowing the happiness in the scene was going to come to a grinding halt at any moment.

I think the movie does a great job in acknowledging womens’ roles in conflicts. Women, as in the movie, are generally used to hide weapons and implant bombs because they draw less suspicion. For the same reason, there has been an increase in female suicide bombers in recent years. Their contributions, however, largely go unnoticed as men are thought to be more involved in conflicts. The movie brings to the forefront such women who put themselves out there and fight for their nations and beliefs alongside their men.

This movie had so many scenes that were so powerful. Though even with all of these other moments there was one that stood out the most in my eyes. It was the moment at the end when there was a protest, and the streets were covered with smoke. But through that smoke the figure of one person was visible. That one moment gave me that true feeling that this was a group of people that were truly standing as one. Through out this movie a lot of the scenes that caught my attention were the ones that had people killing on their own or with one other person. But this moment showed the power of people standing together as one.

When watching director Ponetcorvo’s film Battle of Algiers, this was the first time I have ever watched a movie where I focused primarily on the camera shots and angles instead of paying more attention to the plot. Having done this, I came to appreciate the movie more and will make sure to observe these techniques in movies I watch in the future.

Taking notice of the different camera angles helps to give more meaning to the scene. For example, I noticed there were many bird’s eye view shots after a bombing had taken place.  In these shots, the audience could see the aftermath of the destruction of the setting around the characters and really take in what just took place in the story. Another powerful camera shot was the close-ups on bystanders face when something sad had just taken place. An example was in the ending scene where one of the main leaders of the organization had died and the camera pans the whole crowd and then just moves in closer on one woman’s face while tears are falling down her cheeks. By making the audience just stare at this poor woman’s incredibly sad face, it makes us feel like we are really there and experiencing the same emotion.