Fidaï

The history books reduce wars to figures, highlights and myths. But what if you tell the story from the viewpoint of someone who actually experienced war firsthand? What if you show what it was like to be right in the middle of it, and even actively participate in it? Director Damien Ounouri decided to share the story of his uncle El Hadi, in order to show the world that what took place during the Algerian War 50 years ago is still highly relevant to the Arab world today. As a child, Ounouri heard almost nothing about this history, because his family never spoke about El Hadi's role in his country's rebellion against France. Now, five decades after joining an armed National Liberation Front group in France, El Hadi talks about this dark time in his life. Ounouri includes others who are close to him in his film, and in the ensuing conversations and discussions we discover that this is more than one warrior's personal story: it's the story of a people struggling for independence. It was 50 years ago, but it could as easily have been today.