IN THE opening scene of Gillo Pontecorvo’s classic film The Battle of Algiers, a traumatised semi-naked man sits surrounded by soldiers, with instruments of torture scattered about. The soldiers are triumphant, and it soon transpires why: their victim has given them crucial information about a leading terrorist. The implication is clear: torture worked.
But did it in the real events that inspired the film? Darius Rejali, professor of political science at Reed College at Portland, Oregon, says the victory the film depicts of French colonial authorities over Algerian nationalists was due largely to their use of collaborators. Like most academics…
