Indigènes: A Sign of the Times

Although it deals primarily with events that happened sixty years ago, Rachid Bouchareb's film Indigènes (2006) is in every sense a sign of the times. The movie could not have been funded without the meteoric rise of its most prominent star, Jamel Debbouze, whose popularity was also crucial in...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Research in African literatures 2007-12, Vol.38 (4), p.204-216
Main Author: Hargreaves, Alec
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Academy awards
Actors
Africa
African literature
African studies
Africans
American Civil War
American history
Bouchareb, Rachid
Civil rights
Colonialism
Compensation and benefits
Culture
Debates
Ethnicity
Film criticism
Filmmakers
Former colonies
Immigrants
Indigenous populations
Journalists
Literature
Military pensions
Motion picture festivals
Motion picture industry
Movie directors
Movies
Persuasion
Politics
Postcolonialism
Semiotics
Soldiers
Veterans
War
Works
World War II
World wars
Writing
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Summary:Although it deals primarily with events that happened sixty years ago, Rachid Bouchareb's film Indigènes (2006) is in every sense a sign of the times. The movie could not have been funded without the meteoric rise of its most prominent star, Jamel Debbouze, whose popularity was also crucial in ensuring the film's box office success. In addition, Indigènes capitalized upon and helped to influence major public debates within France about the nation's colonial past and contemporary postcolonial immigrant minorities. In highlighting the role played by North African colonial troops in the liberation of France during World War II, the movie helped to persuade President Chirac to end a long-standing injustice whereby veterans in former colonies have been receiving lower pensions than their former comrades in arms in France. The promotion of Indigènes was also used to press the case for fairer treatment of African immigrant minorities in contemporary France.
ISSN:0034-5210
1527-2044
DOI:10.2979/RAL.2007.38.4.204