F20

I've seen some praise that the film doesn't look cheap in spite of its budget not being lavish. While that is praiseworthy in theory, it becomes pretty irrelevant when the story is this bad, the characters are so stereotypical, and the acting is uneven- ranging from good performances to those that are not.

I watched all of Arsen's previous films and considered them as some of the very best that Croatian film industry has to offer, so I expected this one with excitement. Luckily, I didn't get disappointed. On the contrary, it cemented my feeling that his films simply don't belong to the mediocre world of Croatian filmmaking. Although dealing a very sensitive subject, which is mental illness, he managed to make an exciting, thought-provoking and entertaining film which never loses its steam. Arsen has again managed to surprise, both the critics and the audiences, by choosing a subject, genre and style which has nothing to do with his previous films, aside for his impeccable sense for storytelling, inner rhythm of the film and emotional impact. His directing is again masterful as it manages to hold the story together, creating pace that many Hollywood directors would envy him for. He once more manages to discover young talents who are simply perfect in their roles. It becomes almost as a cliché that a young, undiscovered first-time actor would excel in Arsen's films. He again chooses great songs and picks a young band, giving them a chance to showcase their talents. Similar to his previous films, the editing and the cinematography are excellent as well, making this film one of truly most exciting Croatian films I've seen in decades.

I watched this film at the Croatian national film festival in Pula, among the crowd of several thousand people and it was truly an eye opener. It is no wonder that the film has received a very high audience vote, one of the highest in the past 10-15 years of the festival. The way the story was told, the way it was performed by actors, the way it was designed, shot and edited and the way the soundtrack was chosen, it was indeed like watching one of top quality Hollywood genre films, with a touch of European flavor. Kudos to the filmmakers who succeeded in holding attention of several thousand audience members in Pula's ancient Roman arena, and drawing a long lasting applause after the end of the screening. It was good to know that Croatians are capable of producing a smart genre film that makes sense and that can be suspenseful, entertaining and emotional.

This film strived to offer something different compared to other local films. While the genre is not typical for its country, the element of novelty wasn't present because we are all exposed to other "international" films of this genre. The intention was further nullified by the fact that the story was predictable. It was like a mishmash of things already done numerous times in other films of the genre.

The title of the film itself could be called a "spoiler" and it is elaborated immediately in the beginning but perhaps it would have been better if the meaning of the title was revealed more gradually because like this we aren't left to guess. On top of that, the film relies on coincidences a few times- sometimes so one can turn a blind eye but on some occasions it seemed too much to give it a pass. The film's target audience was teenagers, which can be proved by the fact that two local influencers were engaged to promote it. However, the screenwriter, director and producers are middle-aged men so they incorporated their assumptions about today's youth without seeming to have experience with it. Youth is portrayed as being interested in solely wild partying and wild behavior in general, plus at the same time they are all bad students.

The relations between old and young are clichéd as well and the adults are villainized in a cheap attempt to make the youth more sympathetic. Furthermore, not only was the story predictable but the dialogues were as well. And both weren't credible. The slang used by young people in the film is based on stereotypes.

The film didn't intend to be deep but pure fun, which can be acceptable, but when things are presented this badly, it doesn't succeed in at least this.

After having seen quite a number of Croatian films this one came as a total surprise. I admit that I didn't expect anything new, but F20 manages to deliver strong punches and keeps you glued to your seat for the entire duration of the film. It is completely void of any standard Croatian subjects and themes, such as war, social situations, politics, etc., and tells a story of a young couple trying to escape from the city in the middle of the summer to party at a well-known party beach. Things go terribly wrong so instead of fun and games, there are dead bodies left behind and a trail of blood following them to the very end. The acting is truly excellent, especially knowing that the actors are very young. The cinematography is exquisite, as well as the directing. In my mind, one of the best parts is the music. One of the songs, sung in English by an up-and-coming band is excellent, and a real hit. This is the kind of a film that I'd gladly watch again.