Directed by:
Antoneta Alamat KusijanovićScreenplay:
Antoneta Alamat KusijanovićCinematography:
Hélène LouvartPlots(1)
On a remote island along Croatia’s Adriatic coast, 17-year-old Julija spends her days diving for eel with her domineering father Ante and watching other teens party on a nearby yacht. Julija bristles at Ante’s heavy handed cruelty and resents her mother Nela’s passivity. She longs for independence but is unsure how to achieve it, until the arrival of the rich and mysterious Javier seems to offer a way out. Javier is considering buying Ante’s land to build a resort, which would allow the family to escape their island isolation for the city. Once Ante’s employer and Nela’s lover, Javier flirts shamelessly with Nela and Julija, setting off a subtle battle of hyper-masculine one-upmanship that pushes Ante to humiliate and control Julija even more. Flattered by Javier’s praise and stories of traveling the world, Julija sees him as the solution to all her problems. But does his affection portend freedom, or something more sinister? (Kino Lorber)
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Reviews (2)
The worst is how terribly banal the whole thing actually is. The strongest attribute of the film, then, is the constant threat of physical violence hanging over the protagonist's idiot father, which never actually comes through (or rather, never directly hits the heroine), yet is omnipresent and all that more unpleasant.
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The Croats know how to make films! Murina is a sensitive, raw drama about a dysfunctional family triangle that is disrupted by the planned visit of an old acquaintance, a casually difficult millionaire, who stirs up old unspoken wrongs in an otherwise mediocre fishing family during a sunny weekend as expertly as he stirs up new uncharted emotions. The brilliant performances of all involved, the plastic, well-written characters and the minimalist setting of the Croatian rocks will do the trick. Adequate running time and an above par viewing experience in a pleasant European low-budget film.
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