Svjedoci (2003) Reviews

• Extraordinary Portrait of Human Beings in Wartime

  guslav12004-06-10

  I find it hard to believe that someone might give this amazing film less than an 8. If they do, it is undoubtedly either because they do not understand it, or for nationalistic reasons. Those who ascribe to a simplistic, black-and-white view of the war in Croatia will be disappointed with the grey in which Svedoci operates. What Bresan achieves is a stunningly human portrait of the nuance between good and evil which predominates in times of war. From virtually every standpoint--artistic, technical, acting, musical--this film is astonishingly good. Though it is about the war in Croatia during the 1990s, the film's themes are relevant to virtually every civil conflict. I highly recommend it to any serious cinemaphile.

• Casulties of war

  johnny-082007-07-31

  At first, I was a bit skeptic about this movie. It's because I'm sick of watching endless stories about war and especially about this theme. About endless hate between Croatians and Serbians. But this movie really surprised me and I liked it very much. Story takes place in war and we follow story of three Croatian soldiers (Josko, Vojo and Baric) who came home and they killed one Serbian civilian and kidnapped his daughter. All of this happened from their frustration because Serbian soldier killed one Croatian in war. That killed man was father of Josko and Kreso, who is unfamiliar with this kidnapping story because he was in hospital, due to his injury in war. Brilliant portrayal of people in war, with no more characters then it has. Everything is so well made and the whole story goes great. I think ending is just perfect and it presents director's vision. That one day we can all live in peace and that we can all live together, no matter what nationality we are. Director Vinko Bresan made very good movie and in movie we can see very well known Croatian actors. From big roles to smaller ones. Quality of movie was recognized on film festivals all around the world (Berlin, Jeruzalem, Netherlands, Karlovy Vary and of course in Croatia).

• Excellent.

  mlevenebebe2007-11-01

  Without glamorous Hollywood special effect this movie which on the first glance looked simple manage to convey a very powerful message and compex characters. It is an event (a murder) that under war situation develops very differently than it would be if it is peace; The nationalities of murders and the victims as well as their roles in war became more imortant that the crime itself. The characters and their motivies become more clear as the film develops. I was born in Belgrade so I am very familiar with the tragedy of the Balkan war. However even for my husband who is French and is much less familiar with what happen in 90- ies in ex-Yugoslavia, film was easy to follow and the complexity of the message was easy to understand. We both liked it very much. BTW - Excellent cast.

• Innovative and realistic view of souls lost in war hell

  strider_strider2005-12-02

  Film Svjedoci (Witnesses) by Vinko Brešan is from Croatia. Brešan has won countless prizes and awards in his own country, and with Svjedoci he has been nominated for the Oscar for best foreign film. Already during production, the movie triggered a fierce debate in Croatia: set against the war in Yugoslavia, this young director portrays the fatal psychological impacts of war and violence in three parallel tales. The film is based on motifs from the bestseller The Plaster Sheep by Jurica Pavicic; which was inspired by a true story from 1991 when a group of Croatian soldiers brutally killed a Serbian family. Witnesses consists of three stories, each beginning at the same moment –the moment of murder investigation, and each story gives a new point of view of what actually happened.The film focuses on the idea of losing your soul in a war. Even during production, some of the more conservative town—councilors and some war veterans' organizations protested because of the topic of this film. The film has also been publicly cried out against, because one of the main characters is played by a popular Serbian actress Mirjana Karanovic. Recommendations to observe: First scene (lasting, photography, and exterior). All blow-ups and actors face expressions. Bad point: "Happy" and heroic end of the movie

• Not perfect, but really, really good movie

  tridvajedankreni2004-04-28

  Tough to digest movie. But it recalls very vividly the heaviness of war. It shows the gallery of characters who typically benefit from the war and also the ones who get lost in it. My favourite character is bartender Ljubo (Predrag Vusovic), disillusioned, "leave me alone" kind of person, who is very well embedded in the war economy. Kind of a survivor who hates the way his life still goes on. Some of the war scenes may seem shocking to the viewers who were lucky enough not to witness the war in their countries. But for the rest of us, they are very familiar. As for the technical part, the movie is somehow confusing with its back and forth story-line, and some of the acting is not always convincing, but all considered, it's still a great movie for vaccinating someone against military fever.