I Loathe A Serbian Film

[wayfarer]

Originally Posted by Ricky Chad

I find it sad there has been strings of films recently that replace scares and even creative gore for rape torture and humiliation, with long drawn out scenes of people suffering. Anyone can make a film that repluses or offends - but to genuinely scare is far more of an effort.

I agree with you. I like a bit of gore but I'm waiting for a movie to genuinely scare me. Few filmmakers seem to bother. The REC movies sure gave it a go. Insidious tried and there are some tense scenes in The Dead, but more could be done without resorting to badly written scenes of torture.

[Rik]

Never seen it and never will, as a father myself, I wouldn't be able to sit through such disturbing scenes. Each to their own I suppose, but this film doesn't even slightly interest me, along with the recently banned Bunny Game, what's wrong with good old fashioned film making instead of films trying to out gross each other all the time, I can take as much gore you can throw on the screen, but child abuse in a film is ****ing disturbed, as are the people who enjoy watching it!

[Wes]

Yeah, I totally agree with Rik there. I probably would have ate this stuff up when I was 15 (when my life's ambition was too see New York Ripper) but nowadays I'm too old (well 34), too married etc to chance this one... Irriversible was a big moment in my life when I realised I wasn't half as tough as I though I was. Someone recommended me The Girl Next Door and I passed on that too....

[Vampix]

I can't be bothered to seek out A Serbian Film either, it sounds like juvenile rubbish to me.Like others, I can sit through the most extreme gore with no problems whatsoever but there's got to be something more to the movie than just trying to shock the average audience with graphic violence.Where's the modern day Carpenter's, Fulci's, Romero's, Argento's, etc?

[gag]

Not a film i want to see my friend had the uncut version and i flicked throught and saw the women give birth then the next scene and i thought wo thats not gross just pure sick, scenes like these are NOT acceptable by any standards that was 1 step to far for me, soap stars actor etc have been beat up for real because some one didnt like the story line so im surprised some one has tried attacking the bloke for that scene, scene like these are not needed its sick in real life so why is it acceptable in films.. it makes you wonder what boundries have yet to be explored and classed as acceptable,,

[James Morton]

Originally Posted by Kyle

love it or hate it anyone with the view that it should be banned or censored should just get a grip and not visit film forums at all, if you dont like the sound of a film then its simple,just dont watch it

I agree with you entirely
Naturally I read about the film before I bought the uncut version, there was enough controversy going round at the time anyway, reading forums, magazines etc. I couldn't fail to fail to notice the controversy, the story, certain scenes
But like someone else said on another site, he thought it ASF was going to be more explicit that it is, and he wasn't a bad film after all!
I think ASF is a very good horror and well directed with good sfx
But like you siad and this applies to other controversial films, if you don't like the film, don't watch it
But its wrong to say censor it or ban it
There are enough members on this site who are against this

[Pete]

I get the feeling that, had this been made 30 years ago and played in a grindhouse or labelled a 'Video Nasty', most of the people who dislike it would be celebrating it as some kind of exploitation classic, but because it's modern it's unacceptable. Same with THE BUNNY GAME and MURDER SET PIECES.

(btw I've never seen the film)

[Wes]

Originally Posted by Pete

I get the feeling that, had this been made 30 years ago and played in a grindhouse or labelled a 'Video Nasty', most of the people who dislike it would be celebrating it as some kind of exploitation classic, but because it's modern it's unacceptable. Same with THE BUNNY GAME and MURDER SET PIECES.

(btw I've never seen the film)

An excellent point Pete... I think myself, that the likes of Serbian, and The August Underground stuff is an evolutionary step in the Horror genre. Evolutionary is a poor choice of words there - it implies they're better - not so - I just think the tools available to film makers have improved and extreme horror can be more realistically (another bad word to use) depicted... Let's face it, the gore effects in The New York Ripper and Nightmares in a Damaged Brain have had their day, even though we still love them...

Also, I think the news and media serving up the most horrific stories of the day, especially sexualized violence has made people more sensitive to New Extreme Horror. It's a dangerous world out there, and I'm not sure people wanna be depressed about it even further. Having said that, these films still deserve to live and be seen...

[Ricky Chad]

I think great gore effects is all well and good but its not the gore that's upsetting people with this film.
We had the whole video nasties, grindhouse days but there gone. Now we have big budget gore fests like saw, hostel, wolf creek trying to recreate the terror of video nasties but with so much polish they are empty stupid films.
With ASF we are told its got a message, its ironic, its a way to look at our country. And to me thats just pretentious BS when all it is, is exploitative crap.

[Phurious]

I've watched this film twice now (international version) and I can't help, but laugh at it.
Of course, it's not an outright comedy, but can anyone take this seriously?

The opening scene which hilariously homages a dodgy 80s softcore (but wanting to be hard)core porn video is then further made hilarious when it's revealed who's watching it. (I don't wanna say in case of spoiling it for people who haven't seen it yet, but it is genuinely funny).

And as the film goes on we're introduced to a wickedly comedic and machiavellian character, who proved to be the absolute highlight of the film for me, and that was Vukmir played with undisguised glee by Sergej Trifunovic.
His attempts at expanding the barriers of art and distaste and generating shock put me in mind of the Vienna Aktionists, but where they performed there provocative pieces themselves, Vukmir delights in toying with his pawns and footsoldiers: manipulating them and provoking them by exploiting their weaknesses and insecurities.
Now read Vukmir as Sjrdan Spasojevic and I think we're getting closer to where the truth lies in A Serbian Film. Spasojevic has made a reasonably low budget, great looking horror film (and it does look good I think - some excellent lightning and nifty camera work and pretty cool set designs), but he's done what (I believe) most horror directors want to do, but more often than not fail, and that is provoke a response and oh boy has he succeeded here.

But this is ultimately where the film fails for me in that Vukmir/Spasojevic begins a game early on where the 'shock' value of what Milos/the viewer has to endure is steadily cranked up a notch with each proceeding incident. I know this is what 'has' to be done for Vukmir/Spasojevic's 'vision' to be successful, to increase the disgust, whilst appealing to Milos/the viewer's naturally voyeuristic tendencies (although Milos is 'doing' it for the money, he needs the cash to maintain his comfortable lifestyle which is ultimately gratification ergo the viewer 'has' to keep watching to be satisfied that they can 'say' they've seen it - the deep rooted self-satisfaction that they're part of something; to quell one's curiosity is often gratifying, but not without it's consequences).

Where was I? Oh yeh, but as Milos's life spirals ever downwards and Vukmir's glee and grin stretches ever more, these incidents just get funnier and funnier, because it becomes a game of 'how can Vukmir outdo the incident that he just orchestrated. It truly becomes Jackass territory with increasingly ludicrous set pieces that whilst memorable serve no purpose other than to provoke, which is exactly what Steve-O, Jonny Knoxville et al. have been doing brilliantly for years albeit with less focus on 'new born porn' and 'skull ****ing' - nevertheless their shit catapulting and gooch shocking antics have left me squirming and more grossed out than A Serbian Film could ever hope to.

And whilst the films are quite different there's an undeniable similarity between the endings of A Serbian Film and Kill List. Both were very predictable, but the way it played out in the latter was way more powerful and profound. Although I did like the little coda at the end of the former, which was achingly post modern, but so knowingly, which makes me wonder if Spasojevic is probably going to take the jester's hat from Von Trier - because I think those guys share similar sensibilities when it comes to talking about their films.