NICIJI SIN

Ivan, once a well-known rock singer, is provoking trouble in a bar. Drunk in his wheelchair (he lost both legs in the Serbo-Croat war) he belts out a Serbian Chetnik propaganda song. Thanks to the influence of his father Izidor – a noted politician who was a dissident in the Tito era – Ivan never stays in prison for long. But then things go awry – a quick succession of events chaotically narrated in jumps, ellipses, and flashbacks. Izidor is being blackmailed by a former member of the Serbian state security, whose knowledge is a threat to the career of the Croatian nationalist with the unblemished vita. As the pressure mounts, Izidor is ready to use violence. Ivan flees the parental home and brings about a tragedy.

A darkly pessimistic film about present-day Croatia’s ongoing struggle with the demons of the past and the distance to be covered before the country can take its place in a peaceful and democratic Europe. Stylistically bold and thematically courageous, the film goes off at any number of tangents as it keeps the exposures coming. But like in his feature debut TA DIVNA SPLITSKA NOĆ the director proves that his wilful, personal signature can only be an enrichment for Croatian film.