Нормални људи ([Normal People], Oleg Novković. 2001)

The title of this film has a bitter irony. Bleak fates summoned together at a café. Tom drives an ambulance and is in love with Mira. Mira loves a criminal who abuses her. Duja's pride is a motor bike. The owner of the café hires two kids to steal it. They are shot in the attempted robbery.. No work, no hope, nothing is there for these people in the suburbs of Beograd. Flashbacks show us that the violence around them has a history. Beatings have been the number one problem killer there.
They could try to get a better life in another country. Maybe Greece, maybe Hungary.
So this is one vision of Serbia: a country with darkness, buildings that fall together, and almost perpetual rain. No glimpses of hope, no rays of sun shine and no freedom. The message is clear; it would have been A bit more subtlety would have been welcome.
6/10

Беса (2009, Srđan Karanović)

A Serbian film! Not so often we see films from that country. But at least my library has some. This caught my attention, because it was Serbia's submission for the 83rd Academy Award.
The plot starts in 1914, shortly before the outbreak of World War I. Filip (Nebojša Dugalić), a school teacher, has married Lea (Iva Krajnc), a woman from Styria. While Filip is a Serb, the identity of his wife is somewhat complicated. She is from Styria, a Slovenian, and a citizen of Serbia. But as that territory is occupied by Austria, she is also seen as a potential spy and enemy. As Filip is drafted for the army and nobody in the village can protect her, he asks the caretaker of the school, Azem (Miki Manojlović), to look after his wife. Azem is Albanian, he gives the teacher the Besa, the solemn promise, to look after his wife.
In the beginning it seems that Azem takes his promise too literal. Lea feels like in captivity. But slowly they develop trust and also some sort of affection for each other. Besa, but even more his etiquette forbid Azem to touch Lea. At some point there is a tender moment moment between them - but no touching. This is a very delicate scene, maybe even the best in the film.
There is not happening much in this film. An officer from the Serbian army moves in and Azem gets a chance to show how important besa is for him.In the end the husband returns and they move on.
This is an intersting study about two outsiders suporting each other in a hostile environment. It is also a nostalgic look back at a time when wasn't drunken with genocidal fury.
8(10

Srpski film (Srdjan Spasojevic 2010)

A disgusting movie filled with graphic violence. An aging porn-star is talked into participating in yet another film. A director - I think resembling Radovan Karadžić) plans an artsy porn flick, the ultimate porn movie that will hammer the name of this actor into the minds of posterity. The actor realizes soon that he is performing in a snuff movie. He wants to retract, but is drugged and performs against his will.
The acts he is forced to commit become more and more outrageous and end in catastrophe.
This film may reflect how life in Serbia feels for people - raped by cunning stage directors. I don't know about that. But I do know that this film is hypocritical. It doesn't spare the viewer for any gory detail, but it is very reluctant to be as explicit about the porn part. The pornographic part of A Serbian Film is at best soft-core.  Why?
Maja Milos' film Klip from 2012 breaks that taboo, however she also fails to produce something that is close to art house.