No man's land = Nikogarsnja zemlja [DVD]

Written and directed by Danis Tanovic, “No man’s land” is an anti-war satire set in 1993, amid the Bosnian Serb war. A group of Bosnian soldiers advance toward Serbian lines in heavy fog; when day breaks they are clearly visible and massacred with the exception of Chiki, who runs to the nearest trench. When the Serbian troop responsible decide to investigate the outcome, only Nino, a novice soldier, survives the mission, and is now trapped in the same trench as Chiki. As the two men trade insults, the power shifts continuously between them and their situation is further complicated by the fact that Chiki has laid a tripped mine under the body of a Serbian soldier, Cera, who as it turns out, is still alive. A solution of kinds presents itself when the United Nations Peacekeeping force intervenes attempting to diffuse the standoff. When an English journalist cottons on to the ensuing drama, she seeks to attain a scoop for the network, which involves deal making and subterfuge. The tragedy of the war, and misfortune of these unfortunate three - a powerful allegory for the state of warfare - is underpinned by a bitterly absurd humour that permeates this thought-provoking and intelligent film that ponders the corruptibility of the UN, journalistic ethics and the futility of combat.