Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2007 Contemporary Algerian Filmmaking: from "Cinéma National" to "Cinéma De L'Urgence" (Mohamed Chouikh, Merzak Allouache, Yamina Bachir-Chouikh, Nadir Moknèche) Cheira Belguellaoui Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES CONTEMPORARY ALGERIAN FILMMAKING: FROM “CINÉMA NATIONAL” TO “CINÉMA DE L’URGENCE” (MOHAMED CHOUIKH, MERZAK ALLOUACHE, YAMINA BACHIR-CHOUIKH, NADIR MOKNÈCHE) By CHEIRA BELGUELLAOUI A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Degree Awarded: Fall semester, 2007 Copyright © 2007 Cheira Belguellaoui All Rights Reserved The members of the Committee approve the Dissertation of Cheira Belguellaoui defended on July 27, 2007. Alec G. Hargreaves Professor Directing Dissertation Mark G. Cooper Outside Committee Member William J. Cloonan Committee Member Reinier Leushuis Committee Member The Office of Graduate Studies has verified and approved the above named committee members. ii To the memory of my grandmother. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Dr. Alec G. Hargreaves for his ongoing support, limitless patience, valuable feedback and meticulous insights. I am likewise grateful to Dr. William J. Cloonan whose friendship and mentoring enabled me to push and look forward, and Dr. Mark Cooper whose invaluable expertise has made this research particularly rich. Finally, Dr. Reinier Leushuis whose motivation, practical advice and availability never failed. Most importantly, I am indebted to the Winthrop-King Institute whose scholarships and travel grants made the pursuit of this study possible. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ......................................................................................................... Page viii INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................... Page 1 October 1988 and Algerian filmmaking today: a brief overview ............... Page 2 Dissertation structure....................................................................................... Page 6 1. LITERATURE REVIEW, THEORY AND METHODOLOGY ...................... Page 9 National cinema............................................................................................... Page 13 Third Cinema, Third World Cinema and Third Worldist Cinema .................. Page 35 Transnational, diasporic, exilic and “accented” cinemas ................................ Page 47 A transnational cinema.............................................................................. Page 50 Exilic, diasporic and postcolonial filmmakers.......................................... Page 55 Conclusion ................................................................................................... Page 58 2. THIRD CINEMA AND THE REVIVAL OF POETIC REALISM IN MOHAMED CHOUIKH’S THE ARK OF THE DESERT................................. Page 60 About the filmmaker ....................................................................................... Page 63 The making of The Ark of the Desert.............................................................. Page 70 Synopsis ................................................................................................... Page 71 A cinema of parables....................................................................................... Page 73 Themes ................................................................................................... Page 76 Themes of the nation and what makes the “national”............................... Page 76 Themes of the nation’s crisis..................................................................... Page 81 Cinematic style and poetic realism.................................................................. Page 82 Questions of distribution, exhibition, audience and transnationalism............. Page 87 Conclusion ................................................................................................... Page 94 3. BAB EL-OUED CITY OR THE MAKING OF A “COUSCOUS-WESTERN ISLAMIQUE” IN POSTCOLONIAL ALGERIA............................................ Page 96 About the filmmaker ....................................................................................... Page 100 The making of Bab el-Oued City .................................................................... Page 113 Synopsis ................................................................................................... Page 117 Themes ................................................................................................... Page 120 A micro-society on a slippery verge: fundamentalism and young Algerians .................................................................................................. Page 123 Cinematic style of Bab el-Oued City, where the rooftop is the limit .............. Page 131 Questions of distribution, production and critical reception ........................... Page 134 Critical reception....................................................................................... Page 134 v To Talk or not to talk: Allouache’s ambiguous position as a transnational filmmaker ................................................................... Page 137 Constraints and compromises ................................................................... Page 138 Conclusion ................................................................................................... Page 144 4. UNMASKING AND SCREENING TERROR IN RACHIDA BY YAMINA BACHIR-CHOUIKH ..................................................................................... Page 146 Algerian women in Algeria: an overview ....................................................... Page 148 Hassi Messaoud............................................................................................... Page 152 Of spaces and borders ............................................................................... Page 153 Women’s filmmakers: (re-) telling the untold................................................. Page 154 Rachida: the film............................................................................................. Page 160 The making of Rachida............................................................................. Page 160 Distribution and critical reception............................................................. Page 161 Audiences ................................................................................................... Page 164 Synopsis ................................................................................................... Page 167 Themes and cinematic style ............................................................................ Page 169 The screening of terrorism ........................................................................ Page 169 Women as “Others” .................................................................................. Page 173 A selected scene: “A family disgraced”.................................................... Page 175 Symbolism: the female body, the nation and the veil ............................... Page 176 Further reflections on Third Cinema as a counter-cinema........................ Page 179 Conclusion ................................................................................................... Page 181 5. TODAY’S ALGERIA IN NADIR MOKNÈCHE’S VIVA LALDJÉRIE ..... Page 184 About the filmmaker ....................................................................................... Page 186 The making of Viva Laldjérie ........................................................................ Page 188 Synopsis ................................................................................................... Page 190 Themes ................................................................................................... Page 191 “cinéma de femmes” ................................................................................. Page 191 On the use of French ................................................................................. Page 195 Algeria cultural hybridity.......................................................................... Page 198 Fanonian motifs......................................................................................... Page 198 Critical reception and the question of audiences............................................. Page 200 Situating Moknèche ................................................................................. Page 203 Up close and personal: audiences.................................................................... Page 204 Further reflections on the reception of Algerian-directed filmmaking ..... Page 209 Conclusion ................................................................................................... Page 213 CONCLUSIONS ................................................................................................... Page 214 vi BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................................................... Page 220 Filmography: feature films by Algerian filmmakers, 1988-2003 ................... Page 220 Books and journal articles ............................................................................... Page