Film Review: A Serbian Film (2010)

A Serbian Film is the most brutally horrific film you will see for a very long time. There's nothing like it. Not even close.

The film marks the debut of Serbian director Srdjan Spasojevic and I'm sure that we'll be hearing alot more from him in the genre. A Serbian Film is a technical marvel for the senses as it exhibits fine film making and cinematography. The performances by the actors are really impressive for relative unknowns. Everything regarding the quality of this film would get high marks from me in every regard...including F/X and gore. However, having praised the film for its technical merits alone is only a fraction of what makes A Serbian Film what it truly is...a modern day horror in every sense of the word.

The film has been on a few festival circuits and will one day be available for a Netflix queue or a Blockbuster (probably not) rental. Perhaps the film will be shown in some midnight movie art house in the coming year. While there has been some rumblings about an imminent U.S. distribution deal for early 2011...for now...I'm not sure any distributor or censorship committee, for that matter, would know what to do which such a graphically intense film. You see...no matter what you think you may be able to tolerate as a fellow gorehound or casual lover of the horror genre...there is no film that you have seen in your shocking Asia DVD collection that will prepare you for what A Serbian Film has in store.

The premise of the film is untypically simple. Milos is a retired, down on his luck porn star who loves his wife and son. One day a former co-star presents Milos an opportunity to work with a new visionary director who would offer him a payday of more than anything he would ever see in a lifetime. Curious, Milos agrees to meet with Vukmir and learn further of what he is to be doing. Vukmir explains that he is interested in shooting an art film that will transcend anything the world of pornography would ever comprehend. Although Milos does not find out the details of the film he will be starring in because of a contractual stipulation, he signs the contract after he gets an OK from wifey.

Of course, this would not be considered a horror film if this is all Milos would be doing. No, no...my friends. You see....what Milos agrees to be a part of will take him into a journey of incomprehensible hell and graphic acts of necrophilia, rape, pedophilia and all kinds of other unimaginably sick perversions. He will be a part of something that he could never dream in any nightmare. Something so evil and heinous it leaves one to question the mental stability of each of the film makers and writers. Wait.....did I say the premise was simple?? Ok...maybe not so much....but, the film is shot so well and the story-telling is so adept and sincere, it's easy to follow and immerse yourself into Milos' world. And what a world it is.

I cannot recommend this film to anyone...not even my faithful horror film viewers. It is truly a film that will take something from you and leave you with something sinister. While I do see the buried symbolism within the subject matter...the raping of an innocent Serbian collective by a violent evil government establishment...the ruthless way that it is presented may leave the viewer too emotionally exhausted and mentally scarred to even notice any kind of message. While I do admire Spasojevic for his bold film making and his natural determination to get his vision of a battered country seen by the blind masses...this film is a fuckin' sledgehammer to the face. Trust me when I tell you that you don't want to see this film. And I mean that in the highest regard possible. There is no film that I have reviewed or seen so far that comes close to the dread that A Serbian Film will leave you with.

Milos loves his family. I love mine, too. I have to go take a long shower now.

A Serbian Film is pure human horror...and this marks the first and last time I will ever watch this film.

Thank you for reading,

bryan.