Underground

went into this thinking it would be an excruciating but compelling historical drama, and in the broad strokes i guess it is? but my favourite parts were the slapstick comedy bits, of which there were surprisingly many! miki manojlović and lazar ristovski are fucking brilliant at physical comedy, and some of the film's highest points were a direct result of that. and don't even get me started on how beautiful the visuals were- the shots of the land breaking away and the wheelchair going in circles are in particular going to stick with me, i'm fascinated to know how they were even done! the storytelling is great, it really has the essence of an epic, down to the poetic endings for every character. i think it could work just as well (potentially even better) as a book, which i mean in a good way! i did find it just a liiiiittle too long, but even that i'm hesitant to rag on, as the length of the journey and the amount of change that happens during it is kind of the point. it's fascinating how well kusta captured the idea of a country rising and falling but never truly disappearing. my bigger critique is that part 3 was pretty confusing. it's an absurdist piece with lots of questionable logic, but it's presented well enough that for most of the film i truly didn't gaf. but with the starker tone of the final act contrasting against some of the outlandishness, it was a bit harder to keep my disbelief suspended. i also found natalija's ending disappointing, she has such a strong and compelling character for most of the run, but kind of just. fizzles out at the end. overall an instant classic though. i fully understand and agree with all the hype. kudos and applause and long live yugoslavia