A Serbian Film

That is how the director Srdjan Spasojevic, describes this film. I really do beg to differ. It is an horrific, cruel polemic on the state of modern life and more accurately Serbia.

He uses pornography and non consensual sex - ie rape, as a vehicle for how low society has become. This is after the horrors visited on his country by two decades of conflict. As others have said this should not have been cut, as censorship is wrong in my opinion, we are able to make our own decisions without the `Nanny State' stepping in to say what is good for us. That said I do not feel that more scenes of apparently gratuitous violence, sexual or otherwise would have helped to ram the message home any more than it needed to be.

The plot is that of a semi retired porn star who gets offered `a life changing' sum to make an unscripted porno for an eccentric `artist'. The catch is that he must do as directed at the drop of a hat, and be able to perform, no matter what the circumstances. Those circumstances become increasingly challenging, but there are hints throughout, of what the `director' is looking for, like when he says "victims sell the most".

I think anyone would be hard pushed to say they `like' this film, but whether or not it has merit as a satire or otherwise will be a very personal choice. I admire film makers for pushing the boundaries, and this certainly does that. It was not a happy viewing experience, but then it was never meant to be, so from that reasoning it is a `good' film. It will just not be to everybody's liking, and if you are unsure there is a very good synopsis on Wikipedia, but it contains plot spoilers. Even having read that, I still was shocked and was left feeling quite down after this I remember thinking it was `belligerently dystopian', when in fact that is what it was saying about society. A film that shocks, makes you think and asks questions - all in all a very good effort, but watch with caution.

I just purchased (and watched) the 'un-censored' version of "A Serbian Film" - had to get it thru US based Amazon.com as the, much talked about, additional 'minute or so' of excised footage is doubtless way more brutal than Canadian sensibilities can handle - so Amazon.ca doesn't list it! Certainly didn't appreciate having to pay the stupidly exortidant $12.95 postage for the US shipping - making this a $40.00 film by the time it arrived in my mailbox - those were some pretty expensive 'minutes' of un-censored action! Was it worth it??!!

I have watched a lot of weird transgressive flix over the years - generally I like them - the 'quality' of that genre of film can certainly be 'all over the map'. "A Serbian Film" has excellent production values, acting, and gore FX and in many ways is not really any more shocking than numerous 'mainstream' gross-out horror works such as the 'Hostel' and "Saw' franchises (despite reviewer's statements like "Makes 'Hostel' seem like a Disney film" etc.) - though it DOES definitely have more overtly sexual elements included... which always seems to 'get people going'. as they say. The 'slickness' of the production decidedly helps to suck one in and as the 'atrocities' presented within the plot gain in momentum and outrageousness there are many 'uncomfortable' moments to be 'enjoyed' (or NOT!) by the viewer until the final scene of nihilistic perversity is played out. I found myself initially sorta 'aghast' in the immediate aftermath of viewing it and went back to look at what other reviewers of the film on Amazon.com had said about it. One of the most interesting 'comments' was the info that the film's director. purportedly, made the film as a 'blackly satirical statement on the condition of the people and government in post-war Serbia" - IF that is the case it certainly puts a whole different spin on the film and would warrant a different set of criteria in assessing its' subject matter. With or without such a 'redeeming' political sub-text the over-the-top sexploitational aspects of this film seeem shocking at first, but (upon deeper reflection and comparison) are not all that different or MORE shocking than much similar fare that has been produced in the past. One of the notorious 'censored' scenes involves a woman who has been tortured by having her teeth knocked out B4 she is orally raped - grim stuff!, but then I remembered an identical scenario in the '70's "Illsa, Harem Keeper of the Oil Shieks" where a girl was being sold at a 'sex slave auction' and her prospective 'buyer' demanded similar oral modifications. In another 'censored' scene the infamous 'new-born porn' is 'revealed' - a concept that actually went so 'over-the-top as to become ludicrously hilarious. Other previous 'underground' horror flix such as "Deadgirl', "Aftermath", "Guinea Pig", "Audition" etc,. ad nauseum - ALL feature creepy concepts and buckets of gore that are at least as harrowing as the imagery contained in the 'Serbian' film!

Personally, I feel there is actually something about the word "Serbian" in the title that imbues this film with more import and impact than it might otherwise garner. The fact that the real-life war atrocities in the 'Serbian' conflict occurred lend a special nuance of creepy-ness to the production & viewing experience... without that 'connection' it becomes merely another sick-twisted fantasy to be 'enjoyed' by fans of the genre. One reviewer pointed to the recent film "Whistleblower" as an example of a movie that deals with some of the more 'actual' horrific events of human smuggling and sexual violence against women that are still happening in some parts of Eastern Europe (and elswhere!). I gave it a watch and can honestly say that I found it to be way more disturbing than 'A Serbian Film'. In the final analysis, I would say that "A Serbian Film" is an 'effective' and, surprisingly. well made bit of exploitation that 'appears' to push the boundries of the genre - but REALLY doesn't offer much that hasn't been done elsewhere previously - just where DOES one go from here?!

Even with the few cuts this film is seriously brutal. Without trying to spoil anything... a scene involving a 'new kind of porn' is made even more chilling by cutting the bad visual prop of what is obviously happening. However, one particular cut to the devastatingly cruel finale is unfortunate. It's still obvious what's happening and to whom, but by cutting the actual 'reveal', the impact isn't quite as soul-shattering. Any other minor cuts to particularly graphic scenes are baffling. Some commonly seen things are edited, while other nastiness is untouched. Anyway, when all is said and done, you can't unwatch a movie.