Esmas Geheimnis - Grbavica

A harsh story of contemporary Sarajevo that offers skillfully written characters and an excellently developed atmosphere of a rough and poor household that stands out even more in the local reality. The running time corresponds to the overall slow and somewhat uneven pace, but the young and ambitious director deserves praise. She wrote the screenplay herself, which offers us a big and quite shocking surprise just before the end. The simple structure of the story with textbook built-up tension and emotions offers exactly what you’d expect from a small and independent film. The decent performances, and above all, the practically total absence of music, this the film an extraordinary intimate experience. Definitely not a film for big screens, comfortable seats, and a proper bucket of popcorn! (10.07.2006)

Rather than the formal aspect, I would attribute the main prize at the Berlinale to the subject matter, which is so strong that a lesser rating than 4* is out of the question. It's definitely better not to know anything about the plot beforehand, so that the impact of the final chilling twist, the explanation of why the protagonist behaved the way she did all along, is as great as possible. Esma's (the flawless Mirjana Karanovic) impressive and divinely rendered confession at the end of the film is bound to move anyone with a modicum of perception. (31.07.2006)

The key to evaluating this film lies in the sentence "A theme so strong that anything less than a four-star rating is inappropriate." Yes, try saying you didn't like a film with such a serious theme as abuse and genocide... Doesn't that devalue the moral message of the work? Before Grbavica, I had already seen four feature films about the war in Bosnia, and I believe each of them is at least a class better. The reason is directorial helplessness - long minutes where nothing happens on screen, characters playing with cigarette butts or singing songs. Possibly the entire song, so I could learn the lyrics. I understood the plot and correctly guessed its outcome within 15 minutes, but let's say that's due to my boundless genius and not the creative incompetence of the crew... Overall impression: 50%. (11.05.2007)

A pretty fine TV adaptation with an impressive ending, an effect that unfortunately decreases if you are ready for it beforehand, or if you manage to figure it out while watching. I did figure it out, and then I remembered having heard about it in connection with the film. For me, it’s slightly above par (and I’m more receptive to films from the Balkans than most of the public). (17.03.2011)