Z

Directed by Costa-Gavras (1969) 

Algeria & France

 

Z is a Franco-Algerian co-production that was produced not even ten years after Algeria’s independence from France. The movie was based on the novel of the same name and directed by a Greek expat, Costa-Gavras. The story is based on true events, but takes place in a fictionalized world. 

These policemen look
a little 1984 to me...

In an unknown country, the government stands on a pro-war platform, but there is a growing opposition movement forming. A leading figure in the opposition movement, Z, decides to appear in public and give a speech to the opposition supporters. Because the government controls everything, he and his party are denied request after request for a venue. The party finally finds a venue, but not without resistance. An angry mob forms, and then, an assassination attempt occurs. Was this a planned attempt? Is an angry opponent to blame? Or could it be the government? Digging through layers of potential corruption, the prosecutor tries to put the pieces of the story together to find out who is behind the attack.

"Any resemblance to real events, persons living or dead is
not a coincidence. It is INTENTIONAL."

This film is a classic example of a Cold War-era drama, with the totalitarian feel that 1984 has which I liked from the start. For the first twenty or so minutes of this movie, I was not wowed by it, but then after that, it got really interesting, especially since there are many different layers to the story. If you watch the Criterion Collection DVD version, the cast and crew interviews are worth a watch. In director Costa-Gavras' interview, he claims that the movie is just the story of a typical man (yet, if you see the screenshot to the right, you can see that his claim is probably not 100% accurate). In 2009, he reveals that the movie was was based on a true event that occurred in his home country of Greece. When this film was made, Greece was in a very volatile geographical position during the Cold War. A political assassination attempt was made in a very similar vein to the one in the movie, and Costa-Gavras believed that this film was “his way of doing something as a filmmaker” to communicate the story to a wider audience.