I'm lucky to have a copy of this film ( my friend taped it for me when BBC broadcasted). It is probably the most accessible work of Makavejev because generally his films carry controversial political and sexual context. However, this doesn't include the latter so BBC 2 could transmit it Saturday evening primetime slot!! Personally it's one of the coolest things I saw on tv during '90s.It's a kind of essay of film making rather than documentary. He travels to Yugoslavia and charts the change of the society which Parallels to his own life. It's an affectionate and charming little gem with lovely music. I hope other people will have chance to see this film.
2 Reviews
a hidden gem
dragokin12 March 2023
This movie is indeed a hidden gem, not only because it's almost impossible to be found. In a way Dusan Makavejev, a mythical figure in the Yugoslav cinematography, summarized his career here. His work was not always accessible, but it usually contained a fair amount of humor and didn't shy from being farcical which, in turn, polarized the viewers.
The footage from abroad tends to be more farcical here, yet in the footage from Belgrade, some things are easier to follow if the viewer is acquainted with the political situation in Serbia in the early 1990s.
In the beginning of the movie we have a rare footage of Rasa Popov, another mythical figure, reciting in English on the building in which Dusan Makevejev spent the first years of his life, with a view of then unfinished Church of Saint Sava.
The finale involving Rambo Amadeus makes you wonder to which extent was his stage persona removed from his actual state of mind at the time the movie has been filmed. Either way he was (and still is) a talented musician, one of the last to achieve fame in Yugoslavia and one of the first to build bridges between the countries that arose from it.
The footage from abroad tends to be more farcical here, yet in the footage from Belgrade, some things are easier to follow if the viewer is acquainted with the political situation in Serbia in the early 1990s.
In the beginning of the movie we have a rare footage of Rasa Popov, another mythical figure, reciting in English on the building in which Dusan Makevejev spent the first years of his life, with a view of then unfinished Church of Saint Sava.
The finale involving Rambo Amadeus makes you wonder to which extent was his stage persona removed from his actual state of mind at the time the movie has been filmed. Either way he was (and still is) a talented musician, one of the last to achieve fame in Yugoslavia and one of the first to build bridges between the countries that arose from it.
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