Sur le sol natal

Only 10 years after the first celluloid films were presented to the general public (brothers Lumiere) Slovenes got their first pioneer of cinematography. It was Karl Grossman (in 1905), who made some home movies. In the between-war-years the Slovenian movie developed and thus a documentary about the Slovenian Alps was made. It was a silent and documentary movie, but it was of very high quality. But the first ever feature film, with a plot and acting came only in 1948. It's this very film - Na svoji zemlji (On Our Land), so one can justly say this is the first Slovene movie. In this perspective you should compare it to some early sound films of the 30s. I love comparing it with "A Ferwell to Arms (1932)" seeing for they are both war movies with a love story in the background (there are huge differences though). So no, it's not bad, but it was technically heavily dated at the time it was made (when compared to foreign - especially Hollywood films). Still worth a look and still (for better or worse) among the better Slovene movies ever made.

There will be a lot of people watching this move who would say: "What crap is that?" Maybe they are right for I know that this film cannot be compared with Casablanca for example. But.. There was a young cinematography rising from the ashes after that big WWII massacre and I must say it was a dissent try. Story wasn't something new, just common story about the Nation fighting against Hitler just to be free on their own land. But there were some excellent acting like Avgusta Danilova and Stane Sever. However the quality of the sound and photography wasn't much, but for the time being and the conditions (we must know that this movie was made just 2 years after war) in which it was made we can shut one eye and just look for all those positive things. So let me resume this: the first but also one of the best Slovene movies of all times.