Intimate Enemies

Lieutenant Terrien arrives to replace the fallen Constantin at the remote Mazel outpost in Kabylie. He is young and inexperienced, eager for active service rather than a safe staff post. His first days underscore the brutal realities of the Algerian frontier.

Terrien is ordered to lead a locate-and-destroy operation into the zone interdite to track down Slimane, a former French veteran now leading Algerian rebels. Slimane is never seen in person during the film, underscoring the indirect nature of the search. The mission reveals the murky dynamics and the cost of counter-insurgency.

Fellaghis massacre a local village after a patrol visits Terrien’s platoon. Terrien vows to stay calm and professional despite the atrocity. The event foreshadows the moral ambiguity that will shape his judgment.

Terrien saves a young boy from drowning in a village well, an act that forges a fragile bond between the soldiers and the child. The boy becomes a surrogate family for them amid the violence. Terrien recognizes the human cost of the conflict in the boy’s eyes.

Witnessing the brutality surrounding them, Terrien’s idealistic view of the war begins to crack. He is forced to confront torture, abuse, and executions carried out by Algerian and French forces. The child’s presence and the horrors pull him toward a more conflicted stance.

Terrien discusses ethics with Captain Berthaut and argues that Algerian citizens deserve the same political rights as French citizens. Berthaut, a veteran hardened by prior wars, counters with a cynical view of truth emerging under pressure. The exchange foreshadows the divergent paths their loyalties will take.

During a Fellaghist ambush, Berthaut is killed and mutilated while trying to evacuate a wounded soldier from the Forbidden Zone. The violence underscores the chaos of the zone and the personal risks of leadership. Terrien witnesses the brutal consequences of their mission.

French soldiers retaliate by massacring and burning an entire village in response to the ambush. The atrocity tests Terrien’s resolve and his capacity for restraint. The cycle of violence deepens the moral debt confronting the platoon.

Sergeant Dougnac, a veteran of Indochina, uses torture and brutal methods against the insurgents and privately earns Terrien’s professional respect. He embodies the harsher realities of counter-insurgency. His growing private conflict foreshadows his eventual breakdown.

Mounted pressures push Dougnac to desert the army, marking a frank rupture with the unit. His desertion reveals the fragility of soldiers under extreme stress. The retreat heightens Terrien’s sense of isolation and the war’s moral toll.

Terrien, the idealistic lieutenant, is shot by the boy he rescued earlier in the village. The boy’s brother was killed in a French operation, fueling the act of revenge. Terrien’s death closes the arc of the blooding experience and the transformation of his character.

Slimane is never seen, emphasizing the intangible nature of the insurgent network and the personal costs of the search. The film ends with the soldiers bearing the consequences of their choices rather than a clear political victory. The timeline centers on Terrien’s loss of innocence and the human toll of the war.