Sarajevo, mon amour

Highly recommended.

Sarajevo is a raped city, Bosnia is a raped country and the culprit, although known, has never been convicted. How a person, and a nation, finds a strength to overcome the injustice? Very difficult, sometimes impossible.

I hoped and prayed that Sarajevo has that strength, and still do, however, this movie showed me how heavy the burden is. It is personal, a message to each one of the viewers to try to put themselves in victim's shoes and see how they would cope. Hard core stuff. The film tries to put on a positive spin at the end, however, it wasn't that convincing, I am afraid.

Mira Karanovic is absolutely stunning!

In Grbavica, Sarajevo, Esma Halilovic (Mirjana Karanovic) raises her teenage daughter Sara (Luna Mijovic) alone with many difficulties and working in double-shift. Every now and then Esma participates in a group therapy with other traumatized Bosnian women that have survived to the Balkan War. Esma needs two hundred Euros for the school trip of Sara and is working hard to raise the amount. When Sara is informed by her teacher that the martyr certificate of her father would grant her to travel for free, she presses her mother to give the document. But Esma borrows the money and pays the full price and Sara forces her mother to disclose the truth about her father.

"Grbavica" is a heartbreaking movie about the violence against women in the Balkan War. The touching and credible story is very simple but discloses in a very delicate way through the relationship of a mother abused in a women's camp and her spoiled and rebel teenage daughter. The performance of Mirjana Karanovic and the direction of Jasmila Zbanic are awesome and the result of their work will certainly bring tears to sensitive viewers. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Em Segredo" ("In Secret")

This film is about a woman who has to raise money for her daughter's school trip. Or she could produce a certificate to say that her daughter's father is a war hero, so that her daughter could go to the trip for free.

The film is down to earth and realistic. There are no grand sets, no expensive costumes and no fancy cars. Instead, we get to see a real side of life in Sarajevo. A bus ride, working in factories, picnic on the hilltop or women trying dresses on: all of these seemingly trivial matters reflect how people live. It brings out the soul of the characters, and we get to care for them.

The daughter, Sara's youthful rebellion is direct and raw. Her spectrum of emotions, from sadness to joy, on the final bus ride is remarkable. Esma's work in the night club is also memorable. Her shock and disgust with things that go on around her, and her self pity that she has to earn money like that is striking.

Esma's final confession in the group is touching and emotional. It crystallises anger, hate, despair, ambivalence and love into one. From the interaction between Esma and Sara throughout the film, who would have thought that Sara was in fact born in such circumstances?

This film is touching, not only because it exposes the scars of post war Bosnia, but also the everyday tragedies of the lower class.

I was fortunate enough to see this wonderful film at the Melbourne International Film Festival where it seemed to receive a positive reaction from the large audience.

Jasmila Zbanic has written and directed a film that is powerful enough to speak to a global audience. Even as a twenty-something Australian male, I was able to relate to the struggle of a middle-aged Bosnian woman because of the strength of Zbanic's storytelling and the superb acting.

I was particularly astonished by Mirjana Karanovic's performance and would be thrilled to see her acknowledged at Oscar time next year. She captured Esma's internal conflicts perfectly and brought many audience members to tears. Luna Mijovic was also very good as Sara, shifting with ease between adolescent rage and childlike vulnerability.

Zbanic should be applauded for crafting a film that reminds us that the wounds of war leave deep scars. While Zbanic's script may not be "perfect", the humanity of her message is strong enough to leave us feeling grateful for the gift of love. At a time when the global political climate is in such tumult, films like this remind us to appreciate the loving relationships we have, despite the baggage they may come with.

Very simply a honest, straightforward and earnest film about a topic that is just so important to be informed about and discussed.

The camera-work is so to the point, so is every little piece of direction. The acting is sharp, clear and real all the way through. - I was hoping for Mirjana Karanovic (as well as Luna Mijovic) to win the Bear for their incredibly focused performances. Well, they didn't get it, shame, I thought, but then again, a golden bear for best film is not so bad either...! So congratulations to Jasmila and the whole team and the four different producers from four countries making this possible in joint effort! -

And given all these plain and clear ingredients, what you end up with is one of the most moving "movies" I have seen for a very long time.

This film is not about reinventing the wheel, it is simply all about showing how incredibly well a well made wheel can work.