Nicolas Pignon

Algeria's entry for a Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, "Zabana" chronicles the life of Ahmed Zabana, a man who fought for Algerian freedom in the Battle of Algiers. This film chronicles Zabana's fight to free his country to independence, and his death at the hands of French authorities.

Tension simmers until it reaches an explosive boil in Géla Babluani’s taut, atmospheric noir. Etched in stark monochrome, this story of a hard-on-his-luck Georgian immigrant and his struggles to support his family arches with unexpected twists. A triumph of diabolical filmmaking imagination.