At the end of April 2024, just in time for Easter, a film arrived in our cinemas Video library, a horror omnibus by Luka Bursać that had its world premiere at the end of February at the 52nd FEST. As far as I know, this is the first case where there are simultaneously "two versions" of a Serbian film in cinema distribution: the longer, almost two-hour director's version (which was also shown at FEST) is shown in Takwood and the MTS hall, while in other cinemas, an hour and a half version is shown, which differs from the longer version in that one story has been removed. Video library is so, depending on which version you watched, a diptych or a triptych, in both cases connected by a "binding" narrative in which the criminal (Đorđe Kadijević, a young actor who, quite appropriately, given the genre Video stores, he shares his first and last name with the director of the first Serbian horror film, the famous one Butterflies) hides from the police in an abandoned video club and, while waiting for the chase to "cool down", he watches three (or two) short films on an old VHS player.
Video library is undoubtedly very interesting at the concept level, especially if you like and follow the genre. The original plan was for the omnibus to be directed by three young directors: Luka Bursać, Momir Milošević (Open, Blok 27, forthcoming Soap) and Tina Ščavinčar, so that later Bursać would completely take over the project. In 2019, Milošević presented a short film to the audience You'll see tonight written to be part of this omnibus, Tina Ščavinčar is still preparing the first feature film (which may have been inspired by her story planned for Video library), while Bursać wrote the screenplay for all three stories of the omnibus, entered the competition of the Film Center of Serbia and won support, after which he realized Video library within the framework of his production company Mashina&Zec (at a later stage, the streaming platform Apolon and the digital publisher BLKN also joined the project).
It seems to be the idea of Luka Bursać, to the more versed devotees of Serbian cinema known for its films Darkness i After party, whether with help Video stores reached as wide an audience as possible, which, judging by the poor performance in cinemas, did not happen. Bursać is a good stylist, he has vision and ambition, he has the gift to choose the right collaborators, but he will Video library, when all is said and done, will first of all be remembered as a missed opportunity for a hit, i.e. a film thanks to which Bursać will remain known to a wider audience. Bursać in an interview for the website of the Network of Cinema Screeners of Serbia as an inspiration for Video library stated comic/series/film anthology Tales from the tomb, series Twilight Zone and Romero's cult Creepshow, but what he offered us is much more hermetic than the aforementioned models, much more "arthaus". Although this time he reached for motifs that in theory can be very communicative and receptive, Bursać decided to process them in a way that will not be sufficiently understandable to the majority of viewers.
To the connecting, title story Video library lacks a narrative flywheel. After the opening chase, the character played by Đorđe Kadijević is passive, reduced to playing tapes and not overly exciting attempts to escape from the video club where he hid from the police. Playfulness and narrative enrichment of this segment would certainly add to the overall effectiveness, while in this way everything boils down to a stunt that is cute, but doesn't actually lead anywhere - which is especially pronounced in the last minutes of this omnibus, when we are served a handsome homage to Aldrich's noir classic The kiss of death, that is Tarantino's Petparach stories (and which will be unclear to most viewers and will only confuse them further), but nothing happens that would connect the main story with the others.
The first story, Balanar, is found only in the director's version of the film, and it is inspired by epic fantasy, and that which is emphatically bloody and phantasmagoric. The main character is a nameless traveler (Romanian actor Bogdan Farkaš) who, exhausted after great challenges, finds refuge on a farm with a noble old man and a blind girl. A twist soon follows, which is already indicated in the title of this story and which the versed will immediately notice. Balanar is visually fascinating, the director of photography Lazar Bogdanović really did a great job, but narratively speaking, this is a straightforward story that, even with the best of intentions, has a hard time finding meaning and/or a point, and is also a rather frustrating start to the omnibus. That's why it's not surprising that it was decided to drop this story in the shorter version.
photo: promo...
The second story is titled Dubai. In its center is Aleksandar Savić (Relja Popović), a poor guy from Žarkovo who dreams of a better life in Dubai and to whom the elderly rich man Petar Racković (David Tasić Daf) offers to "swap places". It really does happen, but literally. Racković wakes up in a young body and begins to enjoy life to the fullest (and above all the charms of Alexander's girlfriend Vanja, played by Mione Marković), while Alexander, trapped in the body of an old man, remains rich but not the desire and strength to enjoy it. Dubai it starts off great, Popović and Tasić are up to the demanding acting tasks, but the point is too easy, and the story also ends without a suitable epilogue. As well as Balanar, Dubai it is not without its charms, but it definitely leaves an impression of incompleteness and incompleteness. It started strong, then stopped at the moment when it was necessary to make a point.
The third story is by far the best, a "cassette" that deserves to be rewound and watched again. While they are Balanar i Dubai narratively "skinny", The Curse of the Kuprešs brings many different motives. The extremely presentable Igor Benčina plays Manuel, a married policeman from Majdanpek who is obsessed with the underage Jovan (angelically beautiful debutante Tamara Isalović). The situation is complicated by the appearance of a maniac (played by Vahid Džanković, in an extremely striking miniature without a single spoken word) who sows fear and death in Majdanpek and its surroundings. In this segment, there are the most characters, and space for some great episodes, and they were played by Petar Zekavica, Jovan Jovanović, Miloš Miša Samolov, Jovana Belović, Alisa Lacko, Vladimir Gvojić, Dušan Radović...
The motif of Vlach magic and communication with the dead is introduced into the story at the very beginning (the scene with Sonja Vukićević), but it is mostly sketchy, only "scratched", including the "curse" from the title that was swallowed by the ellipsis. There was definitely material for a full-length film here, it was only necessary to fill in the blanks, but once again Bursać opted for a structure that confuses more than it explains, with a large number of ellipses that frustrate more often than they reward. Regardless of the listed problems, The Curse of the Kuprešs is a very good modern Serbian horror, authentic, creepy and atmospheric, with an almost Fulci atmosphere and brilliantly chosen music to underline all the key points (Wild Angels are represented with songs Your beast loves you i Total contact, the second of which is a duet with Zana Nimani, and they can be heard in the film Love me again tonight groups Denis and Denis, and, in the very crescendo, All that will, my dear, cover with rosemary, snows and sedges White button). Video library will, I believe, be remembered above all as an interesting and brave attempt to offer something different within the framework of Serbian cinema, although at the same time as a film that failed to fully develop the considerable potential it had. On his next project, I hope, Bursać will feel the need to "team up" with a suitable screenwriter, who will help him articulate his ideas into a dramaturgically fuller and more rounded whole (or wholes). There remains hope that it will Video library upon arrival on the streaming platform will find its viewers and/or that in the coming years and decades it will fight for a privileged/cult status among fans of the genre. Whether we liked it or not, one thing is indisputable - films like this one are rare in Serbian cinematography. It should be appreciated.
