UNDERGROUND Movie Review

Once Upon a Time There Was a Country Il Etait une Fois un Pays

1995 Emir Kusturica

Emir Kusturica's self-indulgent “tragicomic satire” (to use the press kit's description) is such an ambitious, unconventional film that it cannot successfully bridge all cultural differences. Tastes in humor differ from culture to culture, and that transition is difficult for any comedy. A solid background in recent Central European history helps, too. Potential Western viewers who are still interested should approach Underground as a Felliniesque Balkan allegorical fantasy.

Title cards divide the story into three acts. The first begins in Belgrade at the beginning of World War II. That's where Marko (Miki Manojlovic) and Blacky (Lazar Ristovski) are making a handsome living as guerrilla fighters and war profiteers. They make their first entrance, grandly drunk and flinging money from a horse-drawn carriage as they're trailed by a brass band playing a theme that could have come from Nino Rota, Fellini's frequent collaborator. Though Blacky is married, he's also carrying on with a young actress, Natalija (Mirjana Jokovic). Marko is in love with her, too. Then the German bombing raids hit Belgrade. The first strike hits the zoo where Marko's brother Ivan (Slavko Stimac) works. When Blacky's home is bombed, he is really upset and becomes a hero of the underground in a series of broad slapstick scenes.

Kusturica and co-writer Dusan Kovacevic create a plot that caroms off into bizarre new directions at every opportunity, eventually leading to Blacky, Ivan, and several dozen others being hidden in a huge cellar. Marko and Natalija tell them that the war is still going on, and have them building small arms to help partisans against the Nazis until the mid 1960s. In rough terms, that second part of the film is about Yugoslavia under Tito, and to tell it, Kusturica uses some Forrest Gump effects that put Marko into real footage. The device is employed sparingly, and the tone of the film moderates a bit then. Even when the broad physical humor subsides, the satiric attitude is unchanged.

Kusturica challenges our expectations about cinematic depictions of war. He treats the destruction, the human costs, the individual sacrifices, even romance as farce. His fantasies take on darker tinges in the final act before arriving at two separate and conflicting conclusions. Obviously, this is not a film to all tastes, but it has moments of near brilliance, and the three leads do remarkable work with difficult roles. At various times, Manojlovic and Ristovski could be ringers for Richard Belzer and Robin Williams.

Even for adventurous viewers with a taste for European comedy, the film is a long haul at 192 minutes. In the end, the combination of serious purpose with playfulness and intelligence makes Underground worth the effort.

Cast: Miki Manojlovic (Marko), Lazar Ristovski (Petar Popara (Blacky)), Mirjana Jokovic (Natalija), Slavko Stimac (Ivan), Ernst Stotzner (Franz), Srdan Todorovic (Jovan), Mirjana Karanovic (Vera), Milena Pavlovic (Jelena), Danilo Stojkovic (Deda), Bora Todorovic (Golub), Davor Dujmovic (Bata), Branislav Lecic (Mustafa), Dragan Nikolic (Film director), Hark Bohm (Dr. Strasse); Cameo(s): Emir Kusturica; Written by: Emir Kusturica, Dusan Kovacevic; Cinematography by: Vilko Filac; Music by: Goran Bregovic. Producer: Pierre Spengler, CIBY 2000, Pandora Film, Novo Film; released by Miramax Films. French, German, Hungarian. Awards: Cannes Film Festival ‘95: Best Film; Nominations: Independent Spirit Awards ‘98: Best Foreign Film. Running Time: 192 minutes. Format: VHS.