italian neorealism and 'the battle of algier's

Maybe the most noticable and significant characteristic of this film is its taste of documentary, which coincides with trait of italian neorealism. Shooting on location is not due to cost minimizing. The director's purpose is to show what is really going on in the streets of algiers, the struggle, the pain, and the wit of people in algiers. Because of this sense of realism, no wonder this film is banned in france for years. The film reveals its neorealism in showing the common people rather than socialites, specifically, in showing the women in Algiers. Although they are not as strong as men, they contributed to the uprising no less than man. Its stress on common people in Algiers indicates that everyone is willing to make a sacrifice to the independence of their nation. Common people can be best potrayed by non-professional or semi-professional actors. Although this film is centered on each of the two sides: Ali La Pointe and Col. Mathieu, it's using of non professional actors cannot be ignored. And because the neorealism is rooted in social reality, those non/semi-professionals don't even have to act, they just have to be themselves in the film. On the aspect of narrative, this film sticks to a simple rather than complex narrative, demostrates its loyalty to authenticity rather than fiction.