A Serbian Film depicts depraved and bestial acts and philosophies, to be sure, but – and this is key to comprehending both the film and the filmmaker's uncompromising artistic vision – it also demands to be seen in the context of its country of origin and the dehumanizing effects of war on both civilian and military populations. So much so that legal charges – centered around the film's depiction of violent sexual acts against minors – have been brought against Angel Sala, the director of Spain's renowned Sitges Fantasy and Horror Film Festival, which first screened A Serbian Film in October 2010. He merely has to "be himself." From here on out, A Serbian Film rapidly descends into tenebrous corners of predatory human sexuality heretofore only hinted at via various, extremely dodgy Eastern European and Asian Internet porn material that caters to a particularly twisted and potentially sociopathic (and, it must be said, often wealthy) clientele. The catch? Milos will not be informed in advance what his role is. In short order, Milos is lured out of retirement by mysterious "art porn” film director Vukmir (Trifunovic, who unsettlingly resembles real-world filmmaker Nacho Vigalondo), and is promised unspeakable riches – enough for Milos and his family to leave death-haunted Belgrade behind forever – if only he will agree to star in Vukmir's enigmatic new film. This is not a normal event in an otherwise caring and compassionate household, and Milos' wife Marija (Gavrilovic) intervenes immediately. The unhappy tale of a happily married family man (and former porn superstar) Milos (Todorovic), A Serbian Film opens on a disturbing note: Milos' 10-year-old son is watching (uncomprehendingly) one of his father's old sex tapes. It would be far easier to dismiss A Serbian Film as exploitative, morally repugnant trash had it been created anywhere but the former Yugoslavia, by a indigenous cast and crew. It's an exhibitionistic catalogue of taboo-obliterating, nausea-inducing atrocities … but then, so is war, especially when it happens in your backyard. A Serbian Film is unforgettably disturbing and disturbingly unforgettable, and it overwhelms you in a dizzying, sickening rush, not unlike Ruggero Deodato's Cannibal Holocaust, Gaspar Noé's Irréversible, or Michael Haneke's Funny Games, minus the fun and the games but with the Balkans’ blood-soaked recent history on its side and as its fundamental raison d'être. Once seen, one cannot unsee this headlong rush into the darkest corners of the inhuman heart. Is A Serbian Film one of the most artistically audacious anti-war statements ever made? Or is it a vile and contemptible piece of subtorture-porn excrement, a sick movie about, for, and by jaded nihilists and "extreme horror" junkies? Make no mistake: Everything you've heard about this film is true (and that includes Eli Roth's "date movie" tweet).
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