Amazon.com: This sprawling, exhausting, deeply moving Palme d'Or winner represents the pinnacle of Serbian director Emir Kusturica's considerable abilities, and what is easily one of the best cinematic achievements of the 1990s. It encapsulates 50 turbulent years of Yugoslavian history, from the outbreak of World War II in the 1940s to the destruction of this once-great nation in the 1990s.
When we first meet Marko (Miki Manojlovic) and Blacky (Lazar Ristovski), it's hard to take these jokers seriously. All they want to do is party their lives away. But the Nazi shelling of Belgrade changes everything, and the resourceful duo comes up with an ingenious plan--one will stay aboveground while the other goes underground. The arrangement represents an ideal opportunity for all concerned: Blacky, his wife, and the rest of their friends and neighbors will be protected from the chaos going on above, while Marko and the lovely Natalija (Mira Sorvino look-alike Mirjana Jokovic) will sell the weapons they're making down below. Everyone will share in the profits.
But Marko commits the ultimate act of betrayal--against Blacky and the rest of his subterranean comrades. This sort of deception can only lead to tragedy, and Kusturica doesn't spare us the details. In fact, it's his eye for detail that makes Underground such a memorable experience--the perfect note his cast strikes between the extremes of physical comedy, passionate romance, and mortal pain, the insidiously infectious brass-heavy score and the strikingly colorful images.
Underground is basically a parable, and doesn't always adhere to the laws of physics. It isn't for the literal-minded, the impatient, or the partisan. It's loud, it's long, and it isn't for the easily offended. It may just also be one of the saddest movies ever made and stands as a fitting tribute to a country that exists only in the hearts and minds of its former residents. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Underground Great humorous take on the history of Yugoslavia. Hilarious lead characters Marko and Blackie.
huh? More is more, eh? Seriously, I'm very open-minded, but the constant circus-like atmosphere just got on my nerves. Kinda reminded me of "Delicatessan" which I also hated. My girlfriend glowingly recommended this film. I just couldn't get into it. I prefer Bresson.
A haunting tale of Yugoslavia's peak and breakup through magical realism Emir Kusturica's 1995 film "Podzemlje" (Underground) represents the rise and disintegration of Yugoslavia through magical realism. Marko (played by Predrag Manojlovic) and his best friend Petar, nicknamed Blacky (Lazar Ristovski), are idealistic enough to join the Communists but still while away their days drinking and carousing. As the film opens, they are returning home quite drunk, riding through the whole city with an entire brass band in tow. This boisterousness and joie de vivre, one of the charms of Balkan countries, returns many times throughout the film.
But when Nazi Germany invades Belgrade, joy is mixed with sorrow and heartwarming friendship with deception. Blacky becomes a wanted man, and Marko convinces him and other civilians to go underground, into a shelter fashioned from an old cellar. In order to have Blacky's wife Natalija (Mirjana Jokovic) to himself, Marko keeps up the illusion that the war is on for twenty years. A whole generation grows up in the cellar, while outside Tito rules a peaceful Yugoslavia. When in 1960s the inhabitants decide to leave the cellar and fight against the Germans they still think occupy their city, tragedy ensues.
The film could have ended there, and no doubt those who watch it without enough knowledge of Balkan history will probably wish it did. Nonetheless, what comes next is the most poignant part of all. Marko, Natalija, and Blacky meet one last time in a Bosnian war zone in 1992. It is Kusturica's howl of pain that what was once a single country has brothers killing brothers. Indeed, the film was originally subtitled "Once Upon a Time There Was a Country". And the ending is skillfully done, touching upon ancient themes of European folklore and providing true and inspiring closure after all of the story's violence.
Kusturica uses what were then novel special effects, putting Marko and Natalija into historical footage of like in FORREST GUMP. Every scene is authentically portrayed, with no feeling that the budget was an issue. Goran Bregovic's soundtrack for the film has a permanent place on my iPod and that of half of my friends. He ties together Balkan Gypsy traditions, the music of the Shopluk/Shopsko region divided between Serbia and Bulgaria (hauntingly sung by Snejanka Borissova), and old Slavic wistfulness.
I imagine that this film is not for everyone. I first encountered the film while living in Romania, where its atmosphere was immediately familiar to viewers. Average Americans watching it, on the other hand, might find the film confusing and strange because they don't know the details of Yugoslavian history and have no direct experience with Balkan society. Nonetheless, it is an excellent production, which will stay with those viewers who "got" it long after its close.
Over-the-top Although I never "got" this movie, Underground is a unique and strange movie experience. It seems likely that it conveys aspects of Balkan culture, especially through the music. It is occasionally hilarious. It has great energy, and ends well. So I can see part of Underground's appeal.
Even so, I found the humor, irony and satire in Underground to be so over-the-top that much of the movie just seemed silly, and therefore also seemed much too long. There is no mention of the racial divisions that so decimated Yugoslavia in the 90s. And I've seen movies about the region I liked much better, especially Beautiful People by Jasmin Dizdar, and also No Man's Land by Danis Tanovic. It is clear that many people really love Underground: perhaps they really love quirky movies, or have a deeper knowledge or better perspective of the former Yugoslavia. My knowledge of the region is probably typical of Americans; as such, I recommend one of the other movies suggested above.
Incredible This film is one of the most profound things I've ever seen. It is tragic, hunorous, touching, thought-provoking, all-together crushing. It's almost impossible to put into words. It has a surreal, fiercely imagined landscape of oddball characters who struggle against themselves and the horrors of their country. It's philosophical and magnificent. A shame it wasn't released in the states. It raises many deep questions about the human condition and about human behavior. You will not be disappointed.
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