Saturday, August 12, 2006

Two Films on Terrorism

One of the key moments in the development of what we consider to be modern terrorism took place on September 30,1956, when three Arab women placed bombs in three public places in Algiers, the capital city of Algeria. The bombs were a response to an earlier bombing in the Arab quarter of town (as opposed to European quarter - the country was under French colonial rule at the time), which may have been carried out by rogue members of the French police in Algeria.

What's most fascinating about the film is how incredibly relevant it still seems, 30 years later. Except for the antique weapons and vehicles (the film is worth watching just for the oh-so-cool black BMW motorcycles the French police ride), it feels like it could be the story of insurgents in Iraq or Hezbollah in Lebanon. It's all here, terror against civilians (on both sides), torture (more important, torture justified and rationalized), a minor defeat of an insurgency, only to see it flare later because the core cause of dispute was not addressed.

When the French want to send in the paratroopers, the colonel in charge talks about the need for a motivating event: "We need an occasion that will justify our intervention and make it possible. We ourselves must create this occasion, unless our adversary provides us with one, as it seems to be doing now." That seems like it's something that could be said in the Situation Room at the White House.

The second terrorism film is Oliver Stone's "World Trade Center." Technically wonderful, but a little manipulative and forced I think. It seems to have a big painted-on heart, but no real heart. The story is amazing, but I ultimately left feeling cold.

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