Outside the Law

Plot

A drama about the Algerian struggle for independence from France after WWII.

Release Year: 2010

Rating: 6.4/10 (1,509 voted)

Critic's Score: 59/100

Director:
Rachid Bouchareb

Stars: Jamel Debbouze, Roschdy Zem, Sami Bouajila

Storyline
After losing their family home in Algeria, three brothers and their mother are scattered across the globe. Messaoud joins the French army fighting in Indochina; Abdelkader becomes a leader of the Algerian independence movement in France and Saïd moves to Paris to make his fortune in the shady clubs and boxing halls of Pigalle. Gradually, their interconnecting destinies reunite them in the French capital, where freedom is a battle to be fought and won.

Cast:

Jamel Debbouze
–

Saïd

Roschdy Zem
–

Messaoud

Sami Bouajila
–

Abdelkader

Chafia Boudraa
–

La mère

Bernard Blancan
–

Faivre

Sabrina Seyvecou
–

Hélène

Assaad Bouab
–

Ali

Thibault de Montalembert
–

Morvan

Samir Guesmi
–

Otmani

Jean-Pierre Lorit
–

Picot

Ahmed Benaissa
–

Le père

Larbi Zekkal
–

Le caïd

Louisa Nehar
–

Zohra

Mourad Khen
–

Sanjak

Mohamed Djouhari
–

L'entraîneur

(as Mohamed Djouhri)

Taglines:
Three brothers. One destiny. Freedom at all costs.

Details

Official Website:
Official site |

Release Date: 22 September 2010

Box Office Details

Budget: €20,000,000

(estimated)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

France: 138 min
 |
USA: 138 min
 |
Argentina: 138 min

Goofs:

Anachronisms:
The French air force plane in 1953 in Indochina seems to be a today's Hercule C130, instead of a Noratlas that was used then.

User Review

Mom, I don't want to lie to you.I killed people. I killed many. For a long time, I've known nothing but death.Forgive me,mum!

Rating:

The standalone sequel to Rachid Bouchareb's 2006 film Days of
Glory,Hors-la-loi starts at a time on which the previous movie ended.
The Algerian-African soldiers, who fought for France against the Nazi
Germany in the previous movie, this time, fight against the imperial
France for Algeria's independence. The fact that some actors have acted
in both movies create a sense of interconnection, indeed.

Against the backdrop of patriotic struggles of three Algerian brothers,
the movie questions both the legacy of modern Western Europe and the
hard-line policies of Algerian front of national liberation. From the
three brothers, Abdelkader (Sami Bouajila) does a long stint in jail
because of his opinions. Messaoud ( Roschdy Zem) goes on serving France
as a soldier in the revolt against French rule known as the First
Indochina War. He gets impressed by the determined struggle of the
local Vietnamese. Saïd (Jamel Debbouze) feels obliged to leave his
hometown Setif after the known massacre. He just takes his mom and
leaves for France. Though he is not as politically motivated as the
other two brothers he always takes his place beside his brothers.
Abd-el-Kader, along with the help of Massoud, awakens a new soul of
liberation movement in places like Renault workshops and local pubs.
Said runs a cabaret and organizes box matches in a place where he
started off as a pimp. Using Algerians in false ID and disguise, the
liberation movement executes every important French police officer or
soldier. The French decide to fight 'terrorism' with its own weapons so
they create a secret organization which takes the appearance of a
criminal organization and they indulge in 'terrorism' too.

In some ways, Bouchareb's movie reminded me of "La battaglia di Algeri
" but Bouchareb should take credits for his guts. He never tries to
present the viewer a rosy picture of the revolution. The liberation
movement does not recognize love or brotherhood on the grounds that
there should be no personal passion and gain. Just because the cause is
just, the party takes away every individual value out the lives of its
members. That's why Massoud never sees his son grow up properly and
Abdelkader threatens to kill his brother if he lets his boxer fight for
France. Besides,the movie does not ignore the clash between two
separate Algerian nationalist movements, MNA and FLN. Some right-wing
French people criticize the movie because of its so called
'anachronisms' and some others call it even 'anti-French' but Bouchareb
does not really anathematize the French. In the movie we see communist
French activists who actually help the struggle of Algerians. Bouhareb
may have forgotten that cinema is, on some levels, a light
entertainment. He may not have made the perfect movie which is about
conveying the whole truth, but at least he tried to do portray a part
of his country's immediate past. Outside the Law is not an anti-French
movie but it is surely an anti-colonial movie which deserves critical
acclaim.