battle of neretva ( film )
the battle of neretva was nominated for an academy award for best foreign language film in 1969, but lost to the algerian film z .
according to news items, working titles for the american version of the film included the battle of the neretva, the battle on the river neretva and the battle of the river neretva. many of the names credited onscreen were spelled differently in other sources. several of the main characters are shown briefly in the beginning of the film in battle scenes and conferences with officers, but do not figure into the story until later in the film .
world war two drama about the 1943 battle around the neretva river between axis forces and yugoslav partisan units .
today, there is a museum dedicated to the battle in the town of jablanica .
the battle of neretva
is actually the second world war 2 film that herrmann supplied a scored (in this case, an alternate score), after
the naked and the dead
.
pablo picasso designed poster for a bosnian ww2 movie
the battle of neretva
... i' d kill for a copy, or even a better resolution photo... .
the cd
battle on the neretva
is well done and well acted with major world stars in leading roles, e. g. yul brynner, orson wells. .
. many of the names credited onscreen were spelled differently in other sources. several of the main characters are shown briefly in the beginning of the film in battle scenes and conferences with officers, but do not figure into the story until later in the film .
battle on kozara known as the' third offensive' is the hardest and most tragic battle led by the yugoslav partisans in world war ii. in june of 1942 germans and their collaborators decide... see full summary »
orson welles in f for fake (1974), a film essay and the last film he completed .
battle on neretva known as the'' fourth offensive'' the most humane battle in world war ii led by yugoslav partisans. in january 1943 german army, afraid of allied invasion of balkans, launched great offensive against yugoslav partisans in western bosnia. they encircle the mountain and begin the mop up operation. out gunned and outnumbered the partisans must not only take care of themselves but try to protect thousands of refugees too. providing a heroic resistance, multiple superior enemy partisans advancing towards the only remaining bridge over the neretva river, through which they intend to transfer himself and wounded at free territory. therefore, all the shock decision of the supreme headquarters to demolish the bridge, but it is just as foolish ruse to weaken the enemy forces on the other side of the river. movie battle of neretva is usually the most famous work by the yugoslav film industry has produced .
the battle of neretva had a long and complicated production and distribution history that resulted in variations of running times and credits for the two different versions. because of the difficulty in obtaining funding for such a large - scale film, initial funding was provided by united yugoslavia producers film production organization, a consortium of yugoslavian film production companies including jadran films of zagreb and bosna films of sarajevo. according to a 16 nov 1968 variety article, six yugoslavian film production companies were involved in the consortium, each one representing a different republic in the country; however, no additional yugoslavian film companies were listed in reviews and news items. additional funding was provided by eichberg films of munich and igor films of rome .
the battle of sutjeska known as'' fifth offensive'' is the hardest, most tragic and the greatest battle that was led yugoslav partisans in world war ii. chaos, hell, fates, suffering, ... see full summary »
the axis powers tried, ultimately unsuccessfully, to annihilate the partisan guerrillas in a series of fierce military operations. at times, the axis powers came quite close to annihilating the resistance, especially during what would be later known as the battle of neretva, which was the culmination of an operation codenamed fall weiss .
as described in the film’s narration, marshal josip broz tito (1892 - - 1980) ruled over yugoslavia, a country formed out of various independent states, during world war ii. the partisan guerrilla tactics and maneuvers lead to the defeat of nazi forces after several battles, including the battle at the neretva river, which lies in southwestern yugoslavia .
as described in the film' s narration, marshal josip broz tito (1892 - 1980) ruled over yugoslavia, a country formed out of various independent states, during world war ii. the partisan guerrilla tactics and maneuvers lead to the defeat of nazi forces after several battles, including the battle at the neretva river, which lies in southwestern yugoslavia .
although tito is not pictured onscreen, his orders for the partisan forces are referred to throughout the film. at the close of the film, voice - over narration dedicates the film to all of the people who made the defeat of the nazi forces possible, explaining that out of the thousands of deaths, the new nation of yugoslavia was born .
in january 1943 german army, afraid of allied invasion of balkans, launched great offensive against yugoslav partisans in western bosnia. the only way out for partisan forces and thousands of refugees was the bridge on the river neretva .
the most expensive yugoslavian production of its day ($ 12 million) and an oscar nominee for best foreign - language film, the battle of neretva is an international war epic that was originally to have run 240 minutes, was cut to 175 minutes for its (successful) yugoslavian run, and emerged at 106 minutes on videocassette. set in early 1943, as the yugoslavian... read more
at the neretva in occupied europe, we fought one of the most celebrated and the most heroic battles for the wounded. here was decided the fate of the revolution. here was victorious the brotherhood and unity of our peoples. tito
106 minutes on videocassette. set in early 1943, as the yugoslavian partisans are battling the onslaught of german and italian troops, the film focuses on a group of local resistance fighters who struggle to cross the neretva river and reach a mountain stronghold. determined to destroy this
in january 1943 the german army, afraid of an allied invasion of the balkans, launched a great offensive against yugoslav partisans in western bosnia. the only way out for the partisan forces and thousands of refugees was the bridge on the river neretva .
resistance movement is german general lohring (curt jurgens) and his aide, col. kranzer (hardy kruger). after intense battling and severe losses, the partisans make it to the neretva, only to learn from demolitions expert vlado (yul brynner) that marshal tito has ordered the neretva valley bridge
the battle of neretva (original title: bikta na neretvi, 1969) was a multinational coproduction. many countries ended up with different edits of the film, running anywhere from its original 175 mins, down to 102 mins. most countries saw it with its original music score by vladimir kraus - rajteric. the british and american edits featured a different score by bernard herrmann. for a moment, let’s concentrate on the bernard herrmann version .
had a long and complicated production and distribution history that resulted in variations of running times and credits for the two different versions. because of the difficulty in obtaining funding for such a large - scale film, initial funding was provided by united yugoslavia producers film production organization, a consortium of yugoslavian film production companies including jadran films of zagreb and bosna films of sarajevo. according to a november 16, 1968
the battle of neretva (original: bitka na neretvi) is a 1969 yugoslavian war drama recounting the largest combat encounter between the axis occupiers and the partisans in the territory of the former yugoslavia during world war ii. the film was an italian - german co - production directed by veljko bulajic and was the most expensive film produced in the country of what was then still yugoslavia. the international cast included yul brynner, orson welles, sergei bondarchuk, hardy krüger, curt jürgens, franco nero and sylva koscina and is also notable for the massive amount of soviet - made armor used in the production .
reported on december 8, 1969 that brynner and other members of the cast were in dubbing and looping sessions for the american version of the film .
as the leader of the partisan fight against the nazis during the second world war, tito was not only involved as a supporter of the ‘gibanica’ westerns, but also as a character in some of these stories. cinema komunisto documents how important tito would find the information disseminated from these films, from the historically accurate recreation of situations to the correct serial number on his car. as a unifying patriarchal figure for the country, the representations of tito on film as a national hero are given great importance, including the choice of actors to portray the character of tito on film. for sutjeska the actor chosen to play tito is richard burton, who is given marshall tito’s original uniform jacket in order to increase the authenticity of the portrayal. this idea of authenticity is further reinforced by the blowing up of a real bridge at jablanica during the filming of battle of neretva, which tito authorised himself. nowadays this is still a tourist attraction, where the yugo - nostalgic communities reunite to sing partisan songs and throw red carnations into the river neretva below. thus the blurring of fiction and reality, the yugoslav illusion and that which remains, meet in this significant location, in an act of commemoration of the past .
at a crucial point in the battle, the partisans found themselves surrounded in a narrow pocket on the west bank of neretva river, near the town of jablanica, herzegovina. with their backs to the river, they faced the advance of main the german force, supported by several panzer brigades. the opposite side of the river, the east, was guarded by far inferior chetnik forces. despite this, the partisans didn’t have enough time to force their way across the river. the neretva is a swift river, flowing through mountainous terrain and impassable at most places. the only link to the other side was a single railway bridge heavily guarded by chetnik forces .
tilva ros'' is a serbian coming - of - age film about skateboarding teenagers in a depressed mining town .
“i hope that, despite what happened, people will still want to shoot here, ” said ms. zbanic, a co - founder of the film production company deblokada in sarajevo, who has lobbied officials on behalf of the bosnian film industry .
review, commonwealth was responsible for increasing yul brynner' s participation in the film .
in 1943, hitler orders the final destruction of the yugoslav partisans. the partisans and thousands of refugees begin a trek northward to the bosnian mountains; their goal is to cross the treacherous neretva gorge over the one remaining bridge in order to get to safety .
although the film' s credits include a 1970 copyright statement for commonwealth united entertainment, inc. and yugoslavia film, the picture was not registered for copyright at the time of its release. however, commonwealth united entertainment' s video edition of the film was registered for copyright on 14 oct 1994 under the number pa - 769 - 128 .
during his years in power, important film studios in belgrade and zagreb had their heyday and local films like “the ninth circle” (1960) “tri” (1965) and “the battle of neretva” (1969) were all nominated in the best foreign film category at the academy awards. meanwhile, foreign productions like “sophie’s choice, ” “fiddler on the roof” and “the trial” — directed by orson welles — were shot in the country. hollywood a - listers like richard burton (who played tito in the 1973 biopic “sutjeska”), clint eastwood and yul brynner all came to make movies .
although the film' s credits include a 1970 copyright statement for commonwealth united entertainment, inc. and yugoslavia film, the picture was not registered for copyright at the time of its release. however, commonwealth united entertainment' s video edition of the film was registered for copyright on october 14, 1994 under the number pa - 769 - 128 .
after the war, a new railway bridge was built on the same spot. the events of the battle were depicted in a 1969 yugoslavian movie which featured well - known hollywood actors yul brynner and orson welles, the latter in the role of a chetnik commander .
every film that has ever been nominated for an academy award in any category. enjoy !
the academy award for best foreign language film is handed out annually by the u. s. - based academy of motion picture arts…
this yugoslav film was probably the most shown yugoslav film of all times, but for the most westerners is still unknown! produced by anthony b. unger, henry t. weinstein and steve previn, written by stevan bulajić and veljko bulajić, who was the director, it was starring sergei bondarchuk, yul brynner, anthony dawson, franco nero, milena dravić and orson welles. a real second world war epic with outstanding cinematography of tomislav pinter. it is based on the true events of world war ii. the battle of the neretva was due to a strategic plan for a combined axis powers attack in 1943 against the yugoslav partisans. the plan was also known as the fourth enemy offensive and occurred in the area…
the partisans for disposal of bridge or stockpiles of enemies weapons use a unidentified bombs .
josip tito, marshall of the former yugoslavia and kim’s fellow cinephile (his personal projectionist reported that he watched more than 8, 000 films in 30 years), fared better. he was seeking to distance himself further from the more severe soviet form of communism, as well as bulk out his country’s sagging foreign - currency reserves, when he began to encourage international productions to come to belgrade in the early 60s. since the 40s, the yugoslavian industry had pumped out “partisan films” glorifying tito’s struggles against the nazis. but familiar faces later began appearing among the whiskery slav regulars: yul brynner, franco nero and, inevitably, orson welles in 1969’s battle of neretva, the most expensive yugoslavian film ever made; then richard burton, who was paid $ 1m to play tito himself in 1973’s the battle of sutjeska .
my guess would be that herrmann' s original recording session tapes may entangled (perhaps lost) amidst international rights / storage / transaction issues. that entr' acte ers 6501 lp album was copyrighted 1975 and released 1976, so herrmann most likely re - recorded a half - hour' s worth of material from his manuscript for listening purporses rather than deal with whomever had distribution rights and so forth regarding the original soundtrack for
battle of the river neretva
...
article, six yugoslavian film production companies were involved in the consortium, each one representing a different republic in the country; however, no additional yugoslavian film companies were listed in reviews and news items. additional funding was provided by eichberg films of munich and igor films of rome .
one of the best war films to come out of continental europe. - - film4. com
now that the region is relatively stable and most of the countries of the former yugoslavia are moving toward european union membership (slovenia already joined in 2004), the film industry has begun to blossom again — not only in terms of the number of films being made but also in subject matter .
according to mila turajlić, the film addresses the trajectory of the film industry in yugoslavia as a metaphor for the creation and the breakdown of the country (van duijnhoven, 2010). between 1945 and 1990 there were 890 completed films in yugoslavia (janković piljić, 2009), out of which 350 were partisan films (goulding, 2002). thus, these propagandistic narratives are central to the construction of a national identity, and thus are a central part of the cinema komunisto film. these productions of historical epics, meant to create a sense of national identity for a newly formed state, use historical fact and creative embellishment to instil a sense of national pride and move the viewer towards creating a shared collective memory. contrary to the situations in other eastern european countries during the second world war, in yugoslavia the liberation of the country happened not through the intervention of either the soviet or western allied forces, but rather through the fight of the partisans. the representations of these stories in film have become essential to the establishment of a foundational myth for the young country of yugoslavia .
last point: are the original tracks for this film still in existence? it would be nice to hear exactly what herrmann recorded for the film, including all the cues that didn’t make it to the cd .
the film, which won best documentary at the chicago international film festival, tells the story of the golden years of the yugoslav film industry, from the 1950s to the 1980s. ms. turajlic, however, believes that the best days of filmmaking for the countries of the former yugoslavia — serbia, croatia, bosnia, slovenia, macedonia, montenegro and kosovo — may still lie ahead. “i think there is a fresh energy in the balkans in terms of filmmaking, ” said ms. turajlic, sipping her tea. “so this is an exciting time. ”
note that the submachine gun seen is a soviet pps - 43, a gun not seen in the film .
i’ve got a lot to say about this film and its score. i will try to keep it coherent .
while it might be premature to claim that there is a second new wave of western balkan cinema (the first new wave — or “novi film” — movement happened in yugoslavia in the 1960s), it can be said that a large group of talented young filmmakers from the region are making an impact on the international film circuit .
no one is quite sure of the origins of these idyllic natural hot springs at an abandoned mountain resort .
the sad remains of a monument to martial arts legend and movie star bruce lee—in the middle of balkans .
this is the best place to attempt to hear bernard herrmann’s score as heard in the film itself. i say “in the film itself”, because it appears to be a different recording than the one released on lp and cd by john lasher under various labels through the years. i say this because there are cues in the film which do not appear on the cd, and conversely, there is music on the cd which is not in the film, or if it is, it’s a different version. many cues in the film are truncated or buried under effects .
nothing pertaining to the score proper here, but i had a friend in the 70' s who persisted in calling this movie the battle of ner - tava - even when i corrected him, he still said it. he was an idiot, but a lovable one... .
the battle of neretva was originally released in yugoslavia in 1969 under the yugoslavian title bitka na neretvi, which had a running time of 175 minutes. after extensive editing, a 102 minute american version in the english language was released in the u. s. by american international pictures and opened in los angeles on 30 apr 1971. that version was produced by steve previn with a new score by bernard herrmann, which was played by the london philharmonic orchestra. the print viewed was a video release of the american version. most american reviews combined credit information for the yugoslavian and american versions; the credits above reflect onscreen credits for the american version .
in order to realistically depict the battle’s climactic scene in the movie’s finale, director veljko bulajic decided to blow up the actual bridge. he expected that the remains of the bridge would become a tourist attraction. but none of the actual shots made it into the final cut, as thick clouds of black smoke obscured the view. the scene was finally shot with a scale replica on a sound stage in prague .
“you do not have a serbian film any more in terms of production, ” said bojana bandic, the artistic director of serbia’s cinema city international film festival. “there is always a part of the money, for example, from croatia, bosnia or slovenia, because the only way to find enough money to make a decent film is to connect all these countries and their budgets. ” co - productions also make sense for balkan filmmakers because some countries — like bosnia and macedonia — lack infrastructure, including equipment, crews and post - production facilities. renting a camera from serbia, doing editing in croatia or having a star from serbia appear in a bosnian film have again become a normal part of filmmaking .
the film opens with footage reminiscent of home movies, where a statue of tito’s head is being placed on a table, while the view is turned upside down and right again. as such the sense of constructing / depicting a repository of personal memory is established, as is the underlying idea of deconstructing and reconstructing nostalgia. alongside the tone of personal memory, this idea of recherche as the mode of memory is most felt when viewing cinema komunisto. the sentiment of nostalgia, then, is reinforced by the use of melancholy music and the feeling is further evoked by the recent footage of abandoned state film studios, avala film, in belgrade. music has been found to be essential in eliciting feelings of nostalgia, a bittersweet emotional state which combines positive affects (love, pride and joy) as well as negative ones (sadness, disappointment, suffering), in creating affective and mnemonic experiences. empirical research has shown that autobiographical contexts (familiarity of the song, memory linked to the song and previous affective experiences) is fundamental to the eliciting of feelings of nostalgia (janata, et al. , 2010). it is thus important to underline that the reception of the film and the nostalgic responses are dependent on the spectator’s familiarity with that which was (and is virtually being recuperated on film) yugoslavia. moreover, cinema komunisto showcases how a nation can be constructed through images and how cinema functioned as a propaganda tool, as yugoslavia, the country, and its idea, a concept of socialism (brotherhood and unity), seemed to have existed only in images of fiction films produced under the state, especially after its collapse and the recent war .
group of petty criminals is trying to make some money under the disguise of musical band in nazi - occupied serbia .
the late marshal josip broz tito is a huge cinephile who watches hundreds of movies a year, invites the likes of hitchcock and sophia loren to his compound to mingle, being best buds with orson welles, and even built his, i mean his state' s premier production company avala film, which churned a lot of high quality films and numerous international co - productions, putting yugoslavia in the map of cinema. he was basically living the dream of every 80s film aficionado. it helps when you' re a powerful dictator of the most prosperous socialist country of that era, but hey, if you had that power you' d do that too
i have a hard time believeing that herrmann would go back and actually
re - record
this music after the original recording sessions for the film. i' m sure that the soundtrack release was made up of cues strung - together from the original recording sessions for the film... . .
at the end of the well - known and highly controversial film, underground (1995, dir. emir kusturica), the wedding party in the last scene is floating away on a piece of land separated from the river bank, symbolically representing yugoslavia and the end of a myth. cinema komunisto seems to continue where underground left off, in the opening sequence of the film one of the images used is the animation of the now former yugoslavia’s map, divided into individual states floating away from each other. mila turajlić, the director of cinema komunisto, takes the viewers on a journey through personal and collective memories to that imaginary island, where it all began .
article noted that more than 150, 000 extras were used in the making of the film, along with 6, 000 yugoslavian troops. modern sources add the following persons to the cast: faruk begolli, vasa pantelic, bozidar smiljanic, abdurrahman shala, demeter bitenc, ranko gucevac, milos kandic, zaim muzaferija, tomaz sarc, goran smigic, risto siskov and antun tudic. an ampas document found in ampas library file on the film lists studio barrandov, a czechoslovakian film studio located in prague, as a participant in the film' s production, but the exact nature of the studio' s involvement remains undetermined .
‘gibanica’ westerns are local versions of the red (ostern) western, which refer to partisan films of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, and which retain some of the same characteristics of the western genre, especially the binary positions of the loyal and courageous partisans who fight for the freedom of their people, and the villainous figures of the enemy; the climactic fights between the two sides; the figure of the hero as a figure commonly motivated by a sense of justice; and the symbolic value of the landscape—these films generally being situated in the mountains and outside of the realm of civilization. these characteristics are exemplified in cinema komunisto, through the montage of a series of selected scenes from partisan films, reminiscent of spaghetti westerns, or rather ‘easterns’ here, where the embodiment of the yugoslav national hero of the partisan, bata živojinović, is shown killing the nazis in spectacular ways. furthermore, the fictionalised persona and mythicized figure of this actor, is reinforced by the inclusion of a popular joke, which bata živojinović recounts in the interview himself: “what’s the last thing hitler said before he died? – kill bata živojinović! ”
the battle of neretva was one of those big war movies – like the longest day and a bridge too far - that ended up being as big a logistical nightmare as the campaign it was portraying. shot in 1969 on a state - sponsored budget in what was then yugoslavia, it included yul brynner and orson welles among its mostly indigenous serbo - croat - speaking cast. dubbed into english for an international release in 1971, it provided herrmann with a vast canvas to work on, even though its original three hour running time had been whittled down to 102 minutes. herrmann, in fact, compared the film to “a great big roast beef”, overdone in parts and undercooked in others. if his music was to be the gravy, then he poured it on thick .
article, columbia pictures was considering u. s. distribution of the film, which had been shooting throughout 1968, with yugoslavian and american versions being made simultaneously. on november 13, 1968
quality of movie was very poor and nobody spoke a word of english. i would not recommend this title to anybody .
director mila turajlić has constructed in this film an imaginary museum of collective memory for a country, yugoslavia, that no longer exists, but that has left traces, however faint, on the consciousness of some 23 million ex - citizens. by collating images from fiction films made in yugoslavia (1945 – 1991), cinema komunisto exemplifies the capacity and power of film to make visible that which is no longer there. for many post - yugoslavs, the film holds cathartic value, as it attempts a reconstruction of the collective cinematographic memory of yugoslavia, a nation that no longer exists and has gradually been erased from the newly constructed national memories of each successor state. cinema komunisto is a daring film addressing a sensitive issue – the socialist pasts of the new successor states. its main achievement is the effort to illuminate some aspects of yugoslav history and cultural memory which have not been dealt with in recent films, and it stands as a small torch in a fog amongst the barren landscape of filmmaking in the post - states, as contemporary films often focus on the conditions and effects of the recent war, forsaking their socialist pasts .
the wars that tore apart yugoslavia in the 1990s also destroyed its film industry, which, according to ana ilic of the serbia film commission, was in the 1960s and 1970s second only to britain for the number of foreign - shot hollywood productions. foreign filmmakers stopped coming, and despite notable exceptions like emir kusturica “underground” (which won the palme d’or at cannes in 1995) and danis tanovic’s “no man’s land, ” which won best foreign film at the 2001 oscars, the local industry all but dried up .
what appear to be tiger i tanks are also seen used by german forces in the film. in reality, these were t - 34' s with modified turrets to resemble the tiger. these mockups were so well detailed that three of them were eventually reused in the 1970 clint eastwood war film kelly' s heroes .
music: citizen kane, the devil and daniel webster, the magnificent ambersons, jane eyre, hangover square, anna and the king of siam, the ghost and mrs. muir, the day the earth stood still, on dangerous ground, white witch doctor, five fingers, the snows of kilimanjaro, beneath the 12 - mile reef, king of the khyber rifles, garden of evil, the egyptian, prince of players, the trouble with harry, the kentuckian, the man who knew too much, the man in the gray flannel suit, the wrong man, williamsburg: the story of a patriot, a hatful of rain, vertigo, the naked and the dead, the 7th voyage of sinbad, north by northwest, journey to the center of the earth, blue denim, psycho, the three worlds of gulliver, mysterious island, tender is the night, cape fear, jason and the argonauts, the birds, marnie, joy in the morning, torn curtain, fahrenheit 451, the bride wore black, twisted nerve, the night digger, battle of neretva, endless night, sisters, it' s alive, obsession, taxi driver, the twilight zone, the alfred hitchcock hour
on 27 nov 1967, daily variety reported that bulajic had also originally considered van heflin for a role in the film and planned to begin shooting that dec. according to a 14 aug 1968 variety article, columbia pictures was considering u. s. distribution of the film, which had been shooting throughout 1968, with yugoslavian and american versions being made simultaneously. on 13 nov 1968 hr reported that commonwealth united entertainment, inc. , a company owned by henry t. weinstein and anthony b. unger, had secured u. s. distribution for the film and was involved in its production. according to the 10 dec 1969 variety review, commonwealth was responsible for increasing yul brynner’s participation in the film. hr reported on 8 dec 1969 that brynner and other members of the cast were in dubbing and looping sessions for the american version of the film .
except, of course, when they do. most totalitarian regimes have understood the propagandist value of cinema. hitler and stalin both tightly controlled film production – inglourious basterds even mentioned the attempts to create a star - studded rival to hollywood at german studio ufa .
there are, however, still issues in some countries in terms of logistics — and bureaucracy. bosnia does not have a cohesive strategy for luring in foreign filmmakers, which was an obvious problem last year when ms. jolie wanted to film in the country. her permission to shoot in sarajevo was briefly revoked because the subject matter of the film — about a love affair between a serbian prison guard and a muslim woman in a war camp — stirred up ferocious controversy. in the end, most of the film was made in hungary, though there were still several scenes shot in bosnia .
clap your hands at the base of the pyramid, and the song of a sacred mayan bird will echo through the air .
with the openness towards the western world, and the distancing from the soviet influence, one of the things that had changed was the fact that soviet film productions were no longer circulating in yugoslavia, and thus the film industry had oriented itself towards the west, circulating especially hollywood productions. not only did it reorient itself towards hollywood mainstream cinema, but yugoslavia became a coproducing entity for historical epic films and a tourist destination for some of the stars of the period .
slovenia, an e. u. member and therefore a more expensive filming locale, has recently reorganized the slovenian film center and is campaigning for tax rebates. macedonian film advocates are also hoping to get a new law for tax incentives soon, and the government recently announced plans to invest in a film studio. there is also talk of creating a regional database that will make it easier for foreign filmmakers to scout locales, find crews and production facilities in the various countries .
tiger i tanks are also seen used by german forces. these were modified t - 34' s and were subsequently reused in the film
in 1984, nta video released a 106 min. version, or so the box says, i haven’t checked out the running time on my vcr. (it was also later released on a bci / eclipse vhs, and in a horrible transfer on a pal region 2 dvd). this is the american cut of the film. this is the best place to attempt to hear bernard herrmann’s score as heard in the film itself. i say “in the film itself”, because it appears to be a different recording than the one released on lp and cd by john lasher under various labels through the years. i say this because there are cues in the film which do not appear on the cd, and conversely, there is music on the cd which is not in the film, or if it is, it’s a different version. many cues in the film are truncated or buried under effects .
news item noted that the film was to be directed by veljo bulajic with the advice of italian screenwriter and director elio petri and italian screenwriter sergio amidei; however, no additional information about the involvement of petri and amidei has been determined. the article also noted that kirk douglas, ugo tognazzi, curt jurgens and romy schneider were to star in the film, but douglas, tognazzi and schneider were not in the completed version .
at one point in cinema komunisto gile đurić in an interview introduces a wall of photographs of foreign celebrities in the lobby of hotel metropol in belgrade, and at several points in the film it is mentioned that famous film stars have visited and spent time on tito’s private island, brioni, off the coast of croatia. the bourgeois luxury and celebrity status that josip broz tito and his wife jovanka broz enjoyed during his role as leader of yugoslavia seems to come in stark contrast to the socialist ideology. cinema komunisto uses the news footage of richard burton and elisabeth taylor spending their holidays in tito’s exclusive summer villa on the highly coveted brioni islands, exposing this increasingly contradictory situation of the country in an ironic way. the glamour of entertaining movie stars on his private island or yacht seems incongruous with the position of a communist leader, however it is undoubtedly one of the elements which have constructed a positive, benign image of tito in the west, one which was more open towards cultural and economic cooperation and less entrenched in the strict codes of communist ideology. the film uses a clip of an interview with orson welles, evoking tito’s cult personality, in which the famous filmmaker stated: ‘since we judge greatness in a man— usually— by leadership, it is a self - evident fact that the greatest man in the world today is president tito’ .
endless night was a british movie based on an agatha christie whodunit set in an isolated house on a stretch of remote english coastline. the film was given a theatrical release in the uk in 1972, but its poor reception led it to being sold directly to american tv. murder on the orient express was still two years away, and producers had not yet twigged to the fact that agatha christie adaptations always worked better as period pieces. the grand dame of crime fiction did not care for the modern tone of the film and was shocked by the inclusion of nudity .
in 1999, a poll of croatian film fans found it to be one of the best yugoslavian films ever made. people still enjoy it and it is prasised for being historically correct and entertaining at the same time. it still has fans all over the former sfry. (wikipedia )
the unmodified t - 34 russian tank is the most widely seen armored vehicle in the film, which was typically seen utilized by the german forces .
perhaps we should be thankful that cinema can be a playpen in which godlike dreams of creation and destruction can be reduced to manageable size. it’s bertolucci who hit on the deepest kinship between dictator and director. the film - maker, stalking the chambers of the forbidden city in the 80s, imagining himself in the shoes of his child emperor pu yi, saw the powerful as continually compelled to re - enact an “ecstasy of omnipotence”. the director writes: “the child starts running from the amniotic shadow of the hall of supreme harmony toward the yellow silk curtain that will birth him to the world outside, billowing in the wind like a sail which will cast him adrift on a sea of omnipotent fantasies. ” maybe that’s how film - makers feel on the red carpet, too .
the battle of neretva, an epic world war ii movie from 1969, with epic tank scenes, no cgi back then, a whole mechanized regiment of jna army, 10000 people strong took part in making the movie ;). what is funny is that axis side is using sherman and t - 34s tanks as well as few t - 34s that were fixed and prepared in such way that they resemble tiger and panther tanks, i guess back then they counted on ignorance of viewers, the tanks were later used (as well as other props from this movie) in making kelly' s heroes. tanks that were really used during this axis operation were panzer iii and panzer iv as well as some self - propelled guns and armored vehicles. the scenes in this video are from the german cut of the movie and it is probably the most preserved and already digitally remastered version of this world war 2 classic. imdb: urltoken historical background: urltoken
along with brynner, the film featured an international cast that included russian director and actor sergei bondarcuk, italian actor franco nero, yugoslavian actress silva koscina, american director and actor orson welles, british actor anthony dawson and german actor hardy kruger. the 14 aug 1968 variety article noted that more than 150, 000 extras were used in the making of the film, along with 6, 000 yugoslavian troops. modern sources add the following persons to the cast: faruk begolli, vasa pantelic, bozidar smiljanic, abdurrahman shala, demeter bitenc, ranko gucevac, milos kandic, zaim muzaferija, tomaz sarc, goran smigic, risto siskov and antun tudic. an ampas document found in ampas library file on the film lists studio barrandov, a czechoslovakian film studio located in prague, as a participant in the film’s production, but the exact nature of the studio' s involvement remains undetermined .
the soundtrack is available on the southern cross label (b000056wod). one of the cues is also available on the ghosts of bernard herrmann (ill 313002), a compilation of the composer’s greatest hits arranged for solo piano – a curio of an album, but highly recommended .
he assembled an army of musicians to play the most bombastic score of his career, a huge fortress of sound that towered over the film. among the themes he included was the unused murder music from torn curtain (it’s not recorded whether hitchcock ever saw the picture) and a delicate melody from souvenirs de voyage, a clarinet quintet he had written for his wife in 1967. it’s unlikely that anybody but herrmann was aware of these self - borrowings at the time. one of the stand - out tracks is “the retreat”, which captures the futility of war with a slow deliberate march set against a long yearning melody for strings. i’m listening to that cue right now on the bernard herrmann at the movies disc (label x atm cd 2003). the tribute film classics label are bringing out a re - recording of the score in the summer of this year .
lost in karastan is a comedy about washed - up british director creating the hagiography of tinpot ruler of a fictional asian republic. photograph: pr
during the opening credits, partisan troops and innocent civilians are being slaughtered by dozens of bombs. the battle scenes continue as voice - over narration explains that the partisan forces led by marshal josip broz tito are attempting to prevent the german invasion of the balkans during world war ii. the narration adds that nazi forces supplemented their 200, 000 troops with italian soldiers and serbian chetniks and other pro - nazi bolsheviks, outnumbering the partisan forces ten to one .
“i feel this is a time of big things happening in terms of expression here, ” said teona strugar mitevska, a macedonian director whose latest film, “the woman who brushed off her tears, ” will hit the festival circuit in early 2012. “for many years we went through wars, we made films about war but now, more and more, we are speaking of other things. we are becoming more universal in terms of the message. ”
reported that bulajic had also originally considered van heflin for a role in the film and planned to begin shooting that dec. according to a august 14, 1968
the seventies saw the rise of a new breed of film makers – once dubbed the movie brats, or, as billy wilder called them, “the kids with the beards” – a cine - literate generation who had grown up on movies and tv. they formed the vanguard of a new hollywood, and, although they initially rejected the old studio system in favour of independent guerrilla - style film making, they were respectful of those that had gone before them. steven spielberg, martin scorsese, john milius, george lucas, francis ford coppola and brian de palma were starting to make names for themselves, and for a few brief years – before corporate merchandising tempted many of them over to the dark side – hollywood was an exciting place to be a movie maker .
an 11 aug 1967 hollywood review (hr) news item noted that the film was to be directed by veljo bulajic with the advice of italian screenwriter and director elio petri and italian screenwriter sergio amidei; however, no additional information about the involvement of petri and amidei has been determined. the article also noted that kirk douglas, ugo tognazzi, curt jurgens and romy schneider were to star in the film, but douglas, tognazzi and schneider were not in the completed version .
ben hopkins, co - writing with oscar - winning ida director pawel pawlikowski, says the film is based on their experiences working abroad and hob - nobbing at “white elephant” film festivals hosted by questionable regimes eager to flex cinematic pecs. pawlikowski also chronicled men with overweening ambitions in his early career: politician radovan karadžic and rightwing russian demagogue vladimir zhirinovsky. but the main inspiration was sinister rumours about what happened to peter webber, director of girl with the pearl earring, when he headed for qatar in the mid - noughties to make an emirate - sponsored film about their founding sheikh .
indeed, according to press articles and reports, the film has screened widely throughout the ex - yugoslav states, receiving very positive feedback but having also been accused of yugo - nostalgia. for instance, the journalist nenad polimac reports in the croatian daily press jutarnji list that the premiere of cinema komunisto in sava center in belgrade, serbia’s capital, had a turnout of 3500 spectators, while at the premiere in the cinema europa, in zagreb, croatia’s capital, members of the ‘older generations’ were seen with tears in their eyes at the end of the screening. mila turajlić attempts to explain this underlying feeling of negotiating with the past, in her note: ‘i enter this story as a member of a new generation of yugoslav filmmakers, one that has hazy memories of a country that no longer exists. we come of age surrounded by the ruins of something that is nostalgically referred to as a golden era, but no one has yet offered me a satisfactory insight into how it was all thrown away. ’ (2010) cinema komunisto offers the possibility to travel back and fictionally inhabit old yugoslavia, even if only for the time space continuum of its screening, and functions as a contemporary site of memory, where each spectator of the fragmented nation can negotiate their past.
battle of neretva ( serbo-croatian : bitka na neretvi / битка на неретви , slovene : bitka na neretvi , ) is a 1969 yugoslavian partisan film . the film was written by stevan bulajić and veljko bulajić , and directed by veljko bulajić . it is based on the true events of world war ii . the battle of the neretva was due to a strategic plan for a combined axis powers attack in 1943 against the yugoslav partisans . the plan was also known as the fourth enemy offensive and occurred in the area of the neretva river in bosnia and herzegovina . battle of neretva is the most expensive motion picture made in the sfr yugoslavia . it was nominated for the academy award for best foreign language film , the year after sergei bondarchuk ( playing the role of martin in neretva ) won the honour for war and peace . the score for the english-speaking versions was composed by bernard herrmann . its soundtrack was released by entr ' acte recording society in 1974 . it was re-released on southern cross records on cd . one of the original posters for the english version of the movie was made by pablo picasso , which , according to bulajić , the famous painter agreed to do without payment , only requesting a case of the best yugoslav wines . 
battle of neretva (serbo-croatian: bitka na neretvi / битка на неретви, slovene: bitka na neretvi ,) is a 1969 yugoslavian partisan film. the film was written by stevan bulajić and veljko bulajić, and directed by veljko bulajić. it is based on the true events of world war ii. the battle of the neretva was due to a strategic plan for a combined axis powers attack in 1943 against the yugoslav partisans. the plan was also known as the fourth enemy offensive and occurred in the area of the neretva river in bosnia and herzegovina. battle of neretva is the most expensive motion picture made in the sfr yugoslavia. it was nominated for the academy award for best foreign language film, the year after sergei bondarchuk (playing the role of martin in neretva) won the honour for war and peace. the score for the english-speaking versions was composed by bernard herrmann. its soundtrack was released by entr' acte recording society in 1974. it was re-released on southern cross records on cd. one of the original posters for the english version of the movie was made by pablo picasso, which, according to bulajić, the famous painter agreed to do without payment, only requesting a case of the best yugoslav wines.
battle of neretva (serbo-croatian: bitka na neretvi / битка на неретви, slovene: bitka na neretvi ,) is a 1969 yugoslavian partisan film. the film was written by stevan bulajić and veljko bulajić, and directed by veljko bulajić. it is based on the true events of world war ii. the battle of the neretva was due to a strategic plan for a combined axis powers attack in 1943 against the yugoslav partisans. the plan was also known as the fourth enemy offensive and occurred in the area of the neretva river in bosnia and herzegovina. battle of neretva is the most expensive motion picture made in the sfr yugoslavia. it was nominated for the academy award for best foreign language film, the year after sergei bondarchuk (playing the role of martin in neretva) won the honour for war and peace. the score for the english-speaking versions was composed by bernard herrmann. its soundtrack was released by entr' acte recording society in 1974. it was re-released on southern cross records on cd. one of the original posters for the english version of the movie was made by pablo picasso, which, according to bulajić, the famous painter agreed to do without payment, only requesting a case of the best yugoslav wines.