After Algeria won independence from France, a single party dominated the government for almost thirty years. When the Algerian people voted it out, the government nullified the election, leading to a civil war. Yamina Bachir's "Rachida" is set during the civil war. The movie's main point is that the protagonist simply wants to live her life even as terrorist gangs roam the streets. A lot of what happens in the movie reminds me of what we now hear about happening in Mexico. People keep thinking that it's possible to militarily defeat the amorphous tactic that is terrorism.
It's a good look at the sorts of things that happened in Algeria during the 1990s. Part of the thing is that I like it when movies show cultures that we don't often get to see. I hope to see more of Yamina Bachir's movies.
