Kruha in iger

''Kruha in iger''(Bread and Circuses) is a movie from 2011, while the story is going on in 1987. Jonas Žnidaršič was the most famous actor in the movie, accept him and Janez Škof others aren't the type of actors people were looking forward to see in this movie. It is a typical Slovenian film such as the last name of the lead protagonists, family Novak. They drive to Ljubljana, so they can compete in a TV quiz, which is very similar to ''The Wheel of Fortune''. The 80's nostalgia from Yugoslavia is also involved in the movie. This was Klemen Dvornik's first motion picture; his other notable work is a Slovenian internet series ''Prepisani''(Rewritten). I still wonder about a choice of the movie's title, since the story itself didn't 'deliver' bread neither circuses. I give this movie a rating 4 of 10, since it didn't had as much 'funny' jokes as I thought it would. To end my review, I have to say I give this movie a 'thumbs down'.

In the time of world's economical crisis, or at least economical crisis in Europe, this movie is spot on, because the movie starts with "...in 1987", the time when the revolution started in the Balcan's. No matter the length of the movie, it's full of high-intelligent humor and it keeps you interested until the end. Since it's so obvious in many areas of life in the Balcan (even if it's based in Slovenia, which is in the EU now), it might turn you off simply JUST because you're not willing to accept the facts - it's like a dejavu, a mirror from the past. IT'S A FACT THAT IT GOT A LOT OF AWARDS: People's choice for best new movie award on FSF (Festival of Slovenian Film), Sasa Pavcek got Best supporting female actress award on FSF, Jonas Znidarsic got Best supporting actor award on FSF (let me remind you there's a cast of 27 mentioned actors, which is probably the reason why Sasa and Jonas didn't get best actor awards, but got best supporting awards), Katja Hrobat got Best costume design award on FSF, the movie Kruha in iger got Best picture award on FSF and the movie Kruha in iger got Viktor award (aka Slovenian Oscars) for best TV movie. Hands down, this movie is more than worth watching.

The recreation of Yugoslavia of the seventies is quite convincing. I loved seeing the studio with the vintage TV cameras and monitors. (Where would anybody find props like that?) The attire was completely believable. It really felt as if the period sequences had been shot then and held in cold storage. The look and feel made me believe that was the way it was back then.

Perhaps, Slovenian/Balkan humour isn't quite the same as on this side of the Iron Curtain, and I don't know what life was like there during the Cold War, so I cannot fault the film for the lack of the touted humour. Funny, like Beauty, is often in the eye of the beholder.

All in all, if I did not not get a big dose Funny, I did get a dose of Life in the good old communist days.