The Battle of Algiers reconstructs the events in Algiers during the 1954-1962 Algerian War of Independence against French rule. It depicts the conflict between native Algerians and European settlers (piednoirs) in which the two sides exchange acts of increasing violence, leading to the introduction of French paratroopers to root out the National Liberation Front (FLN). It shows the atrocities being committed by both sides against civilians in what was one of the bloodiest revolutions in history. As a leftist, the theme of showing the demise of colonialism as an instrument of Western imperialism was central to Pontecorvo's treatment of The Battle of Algiers. The film, a thrilling, unsettling masterpiece, was made in a manner similar to Italian neorealism, French cinema verite and Soviet socialist realism, cinematic movements that aspired to create realistic depictions of the lives of ordinary people.