A Serbian Film [2010]

April 20, 2011

Well, if you are looking for some twisted, sick, and fucked up movie, look no further than A Serbian Film. This year we had a Zombie movie from Serbia (Zone of the Dead) and now we have this, well, I do not know what to call it. It contains graphic images of sex, violence, and everything in between. The main goal of the authors was to shock the viewer with the most demented and sick screenplay they could come up with. The only things that are missing are some bodily functions and diseases. Hey, there you go, there’s the idea for the sequel, A Serbian Film 2: Even More Fucked Up Than The First One.

Now, I’m sure that people are going to try to explain the content of this movie with some metaphors and hidden messages. And if you look really hard, you might actually find them. However, whatever you find simply cannot take away the focus from the disturbing imagery that’s going to be seared into your brain. What makes the whole thing even more horrific is the surprisingly sleek visuals. The production values are unusually high like you’re watching a $50 million Hollywood movie shot on high-definition cameras. When you add to this clever writing and superb direction from Srdjan Spasojevic, you get one hell of a movie.

Now, you might be wondering why the title of this movie is A Serbian Film, and are all Serbian movies like this? These two questions are very related as modern Serbian cinematography is actually stale always playing it safe. Movies are politically correct and tend to avoid polarizing subjects. Movies like this get the funding and movies willing to take risks get the shaft. Additionally, A Serbian Film explores many other issues in a society ravaged by poverty and corruption after the wars of the nineties. So, those hidden messages and metaphors might actually be there. If you want to know more about this, you can check out this Wiki article about the movie.

Meet Milos, a former porno star now struggling to make ends meet. He’s living a quiet life now with his family away from the porno business. However, when a strange director approaches him with a very lucrative offer to star in his new movie, Milos decides to do one more job. Purely for the money, of course, as he’s a professional. What awaits him is living hell on Earth.

It’s difficult to escape just how graphic A Serbian Film is. It’s not just that you’re seeing fucked up stuff it’s that the stuff is fucked up in itself, as a concept. There are a lot of movies about snuff films. We’re talking about movies like 8MM, Cold in July or Sinister. Now, what you’re about to watch here is a different movie about snuff films, more visceral and impactful. So, I must warn you that what is seen cannot be unseen. This means that some scenes are going to stay with you ’till the end of your life.

I’m not a fan of drum and bass music but I fucking loved the soundtrack here. The song by Serbian artist Sky Wikluh titled Pazi Sta Radis is a fucking masterpiece. When that beat starts pounding along with those screeching sounds are just so catchy. Finally, I wanted to add that since this is also a movie about porn industry and human fascination it’s odd that the movie itself can be classified as torture porn.

When A Serbian Film is over and you somehow get over the things you saw, think about something. Think about the fact that things you saw in A Serbian Film are happening in real life. And they’re happening more often than any of us might think. This movie forces us to think about the stuff we don’t want to think about but maybe we should if we want to build a better society. I’m just saying maybe here, as I’m trying to coax some meaning from this insanity. Also, pay attention to how these horrific events start happening and why. I will leave you with this quote from the director:

“It’s a struggle against all corrupt authority that govern over our lives for their purposes .. [of] the power of leaders who hypnotize you to do things you don’t want to do.”
Srdjan Spasojevic on A Serbian Film in an interview for Electric magazine