BHFF ’14: A Stranger

For cineastes, the notion of divided cities conjures images of The Third Man’s occupied Vienna. In contrast, there is nothing particularly mysterious about the effective religious-ethnic cleaving of Mostar. The bridge has been rebuilt but the distrust lingers between Muslim Bosniaks and Catholic Croats. Unfortunately, Slavko is not the sort of man to personally span that gap in Bobo Jelčić’s A Stranger (trailer here), the closing selection of this year’s Bosnian-Herzegovinian Film Festival in New York.

Slavko has surely seen plenty of funerals by now, yet the death of his Muslim friend Đulaga still represents quite a dilemma. Although they had not seen each other since the troubles began, he knows he should pay his last respects. However, if he is seen attending the Muslim service, there could be very real repercussions in the neighborhood and perhaps even with the local bosses. On the other hand, if he does not go, he will completely lose the respect of his wife Milena, as well as his remaining shreds of self-worth.

Evidently, Jelčić’s character-types have deep resonance with the local audience, but they will not be so difficult for Americans to relate with. Frankly, Slavko is not a bad man. He is simply a small man. This often leads to minor everyday tragedies whenever he might find himself tested.

In a way, Slavko demonstrates how divided cities do not just cause divided peoples, but also fractured people. He is the “Stranger,” a title that evokes Camus and Graham Greene more than a painfully self-conscious, late middle-aged protagonist. At the very least, he is prone to profoundly darker Walter Mitty flights of fantasy. Yet, we start to wonder how firm his grasp truly is when his grim reveries start to jarringly intrude upon the on-screen narrative.

Bogdan Diklić, a Croatian born veteran of cinema across the Balkans, is a nervy screen presence, completely pulling viewers into his neurotic inner turmoil. He makes it dashed tricky to pass judgment on Slavko (lest we be judged under similar circumstances), even though Milena and Jelčić clearly have no problem doing so. In fact, Nada Đurevska undercuts him rather powerfully as the increasingly disappointed Milena. At times, her body language is quite the scathing indictment.

Without question, A Stranger represents art cinema at its least compromising, yet its themes still have resonance, particularly for those with roots in Bosnia-Herzegovina, or so we should hope. As the closing feature, it played to an impressively packed house, with overflow forced onto folding chairs in the aisles.

Regardless, it is nice to see the festival slowly but steadily grow year-by-year. Always a major event for the expat community, its general interest film following is also starting to build. While the themes are often heavy, patrons will find the festival itself to be friendlier and more relaxed than the other New York film happening that typically precedes it. Highly recommended as a New York film tradition, the eleventh annual Bosnian-Herzegovinian Film Festival came to a close last night, but watch their social media for news on next year’s edition.

BHFF ’14: Documentary Shorts

They are the things that unify a country. Music, culture, humor, and you had better believe sports all very much define a nation’s character. Four short documentaries addressing such aspects of Bosnian cultural identity (to varying degrees) screened last night at the 2014 Bosnian-Herzegovinian Film Festival now underway in New York.

Dragi Šestić efforts to assemble and record a sevdah supergroup are not unlike the Buena Vista Social Club record and film, except the producer was working in his own country, documenting a musical form that was very vital in his beloved Mostar not so long ago. Arguably, Sevdalinka song and the sevdah sensibility are roughly akin to American blues song and the larger feeling for the blues, but the former is more refined compared to the latter’s earthiness.

Amir Grabus focuses on Šestić’s Mostar Sevdah Reunion, keeping an emphasis on performance throughout the program opening Tales from a Forgotten City (trailer here). While the playing is virtuosic, the mood is rather wistful, befitting Šestić and Grabus’s elegy to the romantic Mostar that no longer exists. Although Grabus had directed straight-up music videos for the MSR, Tales is a proper documentary that deserves further play at musically-focused festivals.

Once again, BHFF regular Nedžad Begović returned with Beško, another short documentary profile. While musician-filmmaker Beško is more prominent than the working class protagonist of Zizi, they both project everyman personas and share ruckus senses of humor. Clearly, Beško was a hit with festival patrons, but it might be best enjoyed by those who can fully appreciate the idioms and cadences of his jokes, sans subtitles.

Unfortunately, Mirna Dizdarević’s Vita Mulier is sort of the ringer of the short doc program, documenting the hard times that have befallen classical ballet in Sarajevo. It is earnest, rather pessimistic, but relatively brief.

In contrast, Sixten Björkstrand’s Bosnia in Our Hearts is heartfelt and optimistic. 2014 is the first year Bosnia-Herzegovina qualified for the FIFA World Cup as an independent nation—and don’t you forget it. The Finnish filmmaker followed several expatriate fans as they traveled to Lithuania for what might be the game to clinch their World Cup berth. For the fans that came to Finland as wartime refugees, a Bosnian victory will be especially sweet.

Although forced to serve as a crew of one, Björkstrand always managed to be in the right place to get the right shot. It is the sort of film that captures the extent to which a sports team can carry its nation’s hopes and aspirations. Frankly, ESPN should take a good look at it, because it is considerably more engaging and satisfying than Maradona ’86 and The Opposition, their two very so-so short football/soccer docs that premiered at Tribeca.

It is hard to go wrong with sevdalinka and soccer. Tales from a Forgotten City and Bosnia in Our Hearts were definitely standouts when they screened last night during Program #3. As satisfying, self-contained films with broad popular appeal, they deserve a serious look from other festival programmers. This year’s Bosnian-Herzegovinian Film Festival continues tomorrow (5/3) with a full day of films at the Tribeca Cinemas.

BHFF ’14: Finding Family

In a cruel twist of fate, Oggi Tomić’s Sarajevo orphanage may very well have been shelled by his Bosnian Serb relatives he had never had a chance to meet. It could have been an ironic tragedy worthy of Sophocles, but somehow Tomić survived the Siege. In collaboration with fellow filmmaker Chris Leslie, Tomić documents his bittersweet Bosnian homecoming and a somewhat reluctant journey into Srpska in search of his roots in Finding Family (trailer here), which screens during the 2014 Bosnian-Herzegovinian Film Festival in New York.

Born with excess cranial flood, Tomić is arguably lucky to be alive. However, the infant came through emergency surgery with no long term damage, except for a bit of scar tissue on his scalp. The question of how much his birth-mother knew of his prognosis before abandoning him will understandably nag at the British based filmmaker.

Despite his Serbian name, Tomić always identified as Bosnian. After all, he was just as vulnerable to Serb shells as his fellow orphans. Without question, enduring the Siege instilled profound feelings of Bosnian solidarity in Tomić, undiminished by his new life in the United Kingdom.  As a result, he has serious misgivings about meeting his blood relatives, well beyond mere abandonment issues.

Given its structure (including an opening teaser), the hour-long Finding Family was clearly produced with the European television market in mind. Obviously Leslie & Tomić’s film addresses deep issues of identity and family, but its emotional impact is considerable nonetheless. Tomić is remarkably honest and direct expressing his lingering pain and resentments to Leslie and his camera. He also vividly recreates a sense of what it was like to come of age during a time of war.

There are moments in Finding Family that are raw and very definitely unscripted. Yet, it is a surprisingly optimistic film, capturing Tomić’s reunion with his early protector and his reawakened love for the city of Sarajevo. While several of Tomić’s encounters are indeed quite moving, the film never relies on cheap sentiment. Recommended for general doc watching audiences as well as loyal festival patrons, Finding Family screens this Saturday (5/3) as part of programming Block #6 at this year’s BHFF in New York.