The Balkan Line

P First, I have distant relatives who suffered due to Serbia elsewhere in the Balkans so I am no fan of Serbia. And my eyes hurt, from rolling, at the frequent lies, and revisionism, by all the parties in the Balkans-Serbs most of all. P This movie is no more an accurate account of the real world Pristina Airport I ncident than ZULU was an accurate account of the Battle of Rourke's Drift. Or for that matter the Spanish movie on this conflict, GUERREROS. As with all too many films these days, "The Narrative" is front and center. P What distinguishes this movie is the excellent acting, pretty realistic combat scenes, and the leitmotif of The Last Stand. Strong character development and, unlike in ZULU, the opponents here- the Albanians-have real faces, emotions and lives outside the battle. Plus the line later in the movie when a character observes that of the Magnificent Eight" only one is Russian, the rest are diverse, even two Muslims with the "Eight". Want to watch a documentary-accurate account of the Incident? Skip this one for sure. Want to see a good actioneer that highlights the martial values of loyalty, bravery and honor (for BOTH sides)? The watch this one. Accuracy: 2*; Action:: 8*; Pathos:: 8*.

This is a great movie about things that happend in war and before and after the war in Kosovo, actually just a little part of it. Maybe Serbs and Russians aren't heroes, but one thing is definitely true, Serbs were just defending they're own piece of territory from the Kosovo Albanians terrorists. The killing and torturing were done by Albanians and by Serbians, but Albanians started the war because they wanted to take over Serbian territory.

Fantastic movie portraying Albanian atrocities they refuse to admit. Don't listen to all the one star reviews, it's Albanian propaganda trying to hid their crimes.

Whilst it was not the Siege at Jadotville per se, it brought a lot of other qualities to the screen. Some solid acting, albeit a bit more Russian than to my liking (you know, though as nails, wrestling a bear kind) the action sequences were spot on. I also like it very much when violence is unpredictable. It is in real life too. The horror of war lies in its unpredictability, the randomness with which the dead and alive are chosen. The backstories are ok, and yes there is some propaganda and Russian flagwaving in it. Just compare it to some of the American movies where everything is stars and stripes, I always take them with a ton of salt, too.

In war there is no good side, only losers. These heroes are the ones that took a loss too, for their beliefs, their family, their comrades. And everyone can feel for them, for there is a little hero in all of us. And we dream of one day being meaningful, too.

I like this better than the superhero movies of late. This type of film is a bit more mature, grim but not to the point where it gets unbelievable horror. It is a bit unrealistic in it's premises, but so was the fish my neighbour caught the other day. It still made for a great story.

I'm beginning to like Russian cinema, Belly Tigr,from 2012, also had this strange but likable feel. Doom lures, but we live on nonetheless. We accept fate but keep on trying even against all odds. It's a cultural thing, it must be.

Balcan line caught my attention with its subject and the storyline description. The film is inspired with the Balcanic military conflict, Kosovo war, the bombing of Yugoslavia and the march to Pristina. Russian task force is ordered take control over the airdrome and wait for arrival of reinforcements under the fire of Albanian terrorists.

As for me the storyline is perfect. We see the events from the different points, in different locations. The narration is smooth. Dynamics increases gradually closer to the ending and tension does not let you go until the final credits.

Atmosphere which is crucial point in this genre is tense. The picture's filled with the pain and suffering of the Serbian people. The confrontation between the Serbs and the Albanians stands by in every glance, in every dialogue. There is drama more than enough. Sometimes it's extremely difficult to watch the film further extremely difficult but still interesting. Somebody may call it too lengthy, but personally I liked the gradual disclosure of the soldier characters, and then the dynamic and spectacular slaughter. In general, the authors allow themselves some artistic nonconformities in one direction or another, this makes the story even more interesting. Should say a word about the actors. Anton Pampushny (Shatay) and Gosha Kutsenko (Beck) are outstanding. Just bravo! Alexander Srechkovich (Smuk) looked great as an antagonist. You start to hate his image almost from the moment his character appears.

To sum up, Balcanic line is ambicious action drama which unexpectedly turned out to be great. However be ready for the oppressive and heavy atmosphere. Several people left the cinema before the middle of the cinema, a few others later. Not because the film was bad. Just the pressure is enormous. If you are highly sensitive, then I advise you to think carefully before watching it.