
The Zerda and the Songs of Forgetting

La Zerda ou les chants de l'oubli
HomePage
Overview
“La Zerda and the songs of oblivion” (1982) is one of only two films made by the Algerian novelist Assia Djebar, with “La Nouba des femmes du mont Chenoua” (1977). Powerful poetic essay based on archives, in which Assia Djebar – in collaboration with the poet Malek Alloula and the composer Ahmed Essyad – deconstructs the French colonial propaganda of the Pathé-Gaumont newsreels from 1912 to 1942, to reveal the signs of revolt among the subjugated North African population. Through the reassembly of these propaganda images, Djebar recovers the history of the Zerda ceremonies, suggesting that the power and mysticism of this tradition were obliterated and erased by the predatory voyeurism of the colonial gaze. This very gaze is thus subverted and a hidden tradition of resistance and struggle is revealed, against any exoticizing and orientalist temptation.
Release Date
1983-02-27
Average
7.6
Rating:
3.8 startsTagline
Genres
Languages:
العربيةFrançaisKeywords
Similar Movies

In Orbit(en)
The future, the space. Sonia is about to be transferred from her station to a newer one. Although everything seems to be going well, Sonia's mind is actually elsewhere, haunted by tragic events from the not too distant past.

Unpregnant(en)
A 17-year old Missouri teen discovers she has gotten pregnant, a development that threatens to end her dreams of matriculating at an Ivy League college, and the career that could follow.

The Outlaws(fr)
In prison in colonial Algeria, shortly after the end of the Second World War, three indigenous cellmates make out. Once free, they attack the authority represented by the triad of the boss, the gendarme and the administrator. “Living the colonial condition,” confided Tewfik Farès, “is something! It’s not sociologically or historically speaking. It’s life. And I think that’s all there in it. [...] For a hundred and thirty years, we wait. We hold back. We push back. We hope. At the same time, on different occasions, there are skirmishes, unrest.

The Choking Game(en)
Taryn finds herself gaining much-desired popularity when the charismatic new girl at school claims her as a “breath sister," teaching Taryn about the Choking Game. Hiding it from her ever-present mother, best friend, and teachers, Taryn sees choking as a way to build self-control and grab an easy high. But, as the stakes are raised through each subsequent ‘flight’, Taryn has no idea that she is actually putting her life in extreme danger.

Tour of Duty(ko)
There remains only silence in a US military camp town and the, soon to be demolished, surrounding entertainment district in the northern part of Kyounggi province. In the town, three ex-prostitutes live with pains engraved in their minds and bodies. This film poignantly shows pieces of their memories and their figures wandering through the forgotten site, and reveals the most pathetic truth left behind.

The Seeds of Vandana Shiva(en)
How did the willful daughter of a Himalayan forest conservator become Monsanto’s worst nightmare? The Seeds of Vandana Shiva tells the remarkable life story of Gandhian eco-activist Dr. Vandana Shiva, how she stood up to the corporate Goliaths of industrial agriculture, rose to prominence in the regenerative food movement, and inspired an international crusade for change.

Mighty Ground(en)
A gifted singer, struggling with addiction on the streets of Skid Row, sets out on a journey to transform his life.

20 Weeks(en)
During a routine scan, a young couple navigating their first pregnancy discover a health condition that could gravely impact their baby, forcing them to re-examine their relationship and their future.

The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond(en)
Tells the story of Fisher Willow, the disliked 1920s Memphis débutante daughter of a plantation owner with a distaste for narrow-minded people and a penchant for shocking and insulting those around her. After returning from studies overseas, Fisher falls in love with Jimmy, the down-and-out son of an alcoholic father and an insane mother who works at a store on her family's plantation.

The Yes Men Are Revolting(en)
Activist-pranksters Andy Bichlbaum and Mike Bonnano pull the rug out from under mega-corporations, government officials and a complacent media in a series of outrageous stunts designed to draw awareness to the issue of climate change.

Learning to Drive(en)
As her marriage dissolves, a Manhattan writer takes driving lessons from a Sikh instructor with marriage troubles of his own. In each other's company they find the courage to get back on the road and the strength to take the wheel.

The Golden Era(zh)
The story of writer Xiao Hong comes alive through memories of her great love affair, literary influence and escape from China during World War II.

Self Made(he)
Self Made tells the story of two women - one Israeli, the other Palestinian- who are trapped within their respective worlds. After a mix-up at a checkpoint, they find themselves living the life of the other on the opposite side of the border.

The Milk of Sorrow(es)
Fausta is suffering from a rare disease called the Milk of Sorrow, which is transmitted through the breast milk of pregnant women who were abused or raped during or soon after pregnancy. While living in constant fear and confusion due to this disease, she must face the sudden death of her mother. She chooses to take drastic measures to not follow in her mother's footsteps.

Crazy for Christmas(en)
A girl loses her parents and husband and is left driving a limo trying to get by raising her young son. An interesting but strange rich man hires her limo on Christmas eve and has her drive him to various ice rinks where he gives out $100 bills to the people there. The news media catches on and starts following him.

India Cabaret(hi)
A documentary exploring the "respectable" and "immoral" stereotypes of women in Indian society told from the point of view of 2 strip-tease dancers in a cabaret house in Bombay.

Welcome to Me(en)
A year in the life of Alice Klieg, a woman with Borderline personality disorder who wins the Mega Millions lottery, quits her meds and buys her own talk show.

Jamila, the Algerian(ar)
Djamila, a young Algerian woman living with her brother Hadi and her uncle Mustafa in the Casbah district of Algiers under the French occupation of Algeria, sees the full extent of injustice, tyranny and cruelty on his compatriots by French soldiers. Jamila's nationalist spirit will be strengthened when French forces invade her university to arrest her classmate Amina who commits suicide by ingesting poison. Shortly after the prominent Algerian guerrilla leader Youssef takes refuge with her, she realizes that her uncle Mustafa is part of this network of anti-colonial rebel fighters. Her uncle linked her to the National Liberation Front (FLN). A series of events illustrate Jamila's participation in resistance operations against the occupier before she was finally captured and tortured. Finally, despite the efforts of her French lawyer, Jamila is sentenced to death...
Recommendations Movies

With a Right to Kill(da)
This documentary looks at the Danish resistance movement's execution of 400 informers during the Nazi occupation and the ensuing cover-up.

Mobile Suit SD Gundam Mk II(ja)
Mobile Suit SD Gundam Mk. II delivers with more tongue-in-cheek humor than the first series. In "The Rolling Colony Affair," a colony is hosting a cabaret show featuring the girls of Gundam. But the show turns disastrous when men and mobile suits go crazy over the girls, sending the colony rolling out of control. A parody of the videogame RPG genre, "Gundam Legend" has Amuro, Kamille and Judau sent on a perilous quest to rescue the princess of the Zeta Kingdom from Char Aznable and his vicious Zeon MS forces.

Groot's First Steps(en)
Following the events of “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1,” Baby Groot is finally ready to try taking his first steps out of his pot—only to learn you have to walk before you can run.

Porky's II: The Next Day(en)
When the students of Angel Beach High decide to stage "An Evening With Shakespeare," their efforts are threatened by Miss Balbricker, who views the works of Shakespeare as obscene. She enlists the help of Reverend Bubba Flavel, a religious fanatic who brings along his flock of followers to pressure the school into shutting down the production.

Cine Gibi 7: Bagunça Animal(pt)
Trying to escape his bath, Monicão ends up hiding in the movie theater. Mônica can't find her pet in the dark, so she asks Franjinha to play some short films that might lure the dog out of hiding.

Beyond the Barricade(da)
Family man Poul Berg is tempted by a questionable investement offer and indebts himself to a point where suicide seems like the only way out. His widow struggles to maintain even a simple standard of living for herself and their three children, who are fatally marked by their fathers deed. (stumfilm.dk)

There Are No Saints(en)
A man is imprisoned for a crime he didn't commit. When his wife is murdered and his son kidnapped and taken to Mexico, he devises an elaborate and dangerous plan to rescue his son and avenge the murder.

Kamen Rider SD: Strange?! Kumo Otoko(ja)
"Kamen Rider SD: Strange!? Kumo Otoko" is an animated OVA based on the gag manga Kamen Rider SD: Hurricane Legend. This cute and comedic short movie features chibi versions of the Showa Era Kamen Riders, as they team up against the evil GranShocker organization, while Kamen Rider Black RX tries to confess his love to female sports instructor Michiru.

Doctor Who: Last Christmas(en)
The Doctor and Clara face their Last Christmas. Trapped on an Arctic base, under attack from terrifying creatures, who are you going to call? Santa Claus!

Groot's Pursuit(en)
Groot investigates a spooky noise that’s been haunting the Quadrant, which leads to an intense dance off.

Scream(en)
Twenty-five years after a streak of brutal murders shocked the quiet town of Woodsboro, a new killer has donned the Ghostface mask and begins targeting a group of teenagers to resurrect secrets from the town’s deadly past.

Ghostbusters II(en)
Having lost their status and credibility five years after covering New York City with gooey roasted marshmallows in Ghostbusters (1984), the city's former heroes and once-popular spirit-hunters struggle to keep afloat, forced to work odd jobs. However, when Dana and her baby have yet another terrifying encounter with the paranormal, it is up to Peter Venkman and his fearless team of supernatural crime fighters to step up and save the day. Once more, humankind is in danger, as rivers of slimy psycho-reactive ectoplasm, paired with the dreadful manifestation of evil sixteenth-century tyrant Vigo the Carpathian, threaten to plunge the entire city into darkness. Is the world ready to believe? Can the Ghostbusters save us for the second time?

Mobile Suit SD Gundam Mk I(ja)
A collection of short parodies of the Mobile Suit Gundam saga. Episode 1 pokes fun at key events that occurred during the One Year War. In episode 2, Amuro, Kamille and Judau fight over who runs the better pension when Char comes in to crash their party. Episode 3 is the SD Olympics, an array of athletic events pitting man with mobile suit.

Wild Chicks in Love(de)
Five teenage girls navigate the twists and turns of their complicated emotional lives, and learn the secrets of the heart through their friendship.

Doctor Who: The Next Doctor(en)
The Doctor arrives in Victorian London. It's Christmas, but snow isn't the only thing descending on the tranquil and jubilant civilization, as familiar silver giants from an alternate reality are amassing in numbers. The Cybermen are on the move again, and the only beings who can stop them are the Doctor and... another Doctor?

Super Furball Saves the Future(fi)
To save the world, Super Furball has to save the bees. In order to do so, the heroic guinea pig has to redeem the biggest bully in school.

Mobile Suit SD Gundam Mk IV(ja)
The SD Gundams are at it again: first with a race among all of the prior SD Gundam characters, then the SD Zeons run a space travel agency in the second episode.