This topical and innovative study is the first book on Algerian cinema to be published in English since the 1970s. At a time when North African and Islamic cultures are of increasing political significance, and when Algeria is celebrating 50 years of independence, Algerian National Cinema presents a dynamic, detailed and up to date analysis of how film has represented the complex identities of this often misunderstood nation. Rooted in a thorough understanding of Algerian society, politics and culture, Algerian National Cinema explores key films from The Battle of Algiers (1966) to Mascarades (2007). Introductions to Algerian history and to the development of a national film industry are followed by chapters on the essential genres and themes of filmmaking in Algeria from the 1960s to the present day, including: --films of anti-colonial struggle --representations of gender --Berber cinema --filming the 'black decade' of the 1990s --cinema of resistance and revolt --film and memory This thoughtful and timely book will appeal to all interested in world cinemas, in North African and Islamic cultures, and in the role of cinema as a vehicle for the expression of contested identities in anti-colonial, postcolonial and neo-colonial contexts. By the author of the critically-acclaimed Contemporary French Cinema.