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MOVIES / ON DVD / GRBAVICA: THE LAND OF MY DREAMS
Grbavica: The Land of My Dreams

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Grbavica: The Land of My Dreams (2007)

98%
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78%
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98 %
Reviews Counted: 42 Fresh: 41  Rotten:1 Average Rating: 7.5/10
 
Consensus: An emotionally blunt and gripping drama. An emotionally blunt and gripping drama, Grbavica deftly explores the emotional toll that all wars take upon those who survive them. more
 
Rated: 15
Runtime: 1 hr 31 mins
Theatrical Release: 15-12-2006
Synopsis:
Single mother Esma lives with her 12-year-old daughter Sara in Sarajevo’s Grbavica neighborhood, where life is still being reconstructed after the 1990s Yugoslav wars. Unable to make ends meet with the meager government aid she receives, Esma takes a job as a cocktail waitress in a... [More]
Single mother Esma lives with her 12-year-old daughter Sara in Sarajevo’s Grbavica neighborhood, where life is still being reconstructed after the 1990s Yugoslav wars. Unable to make ends meet with the meager government aid she receives, Esma takes a job as a cocktail waitress in a nightclub. Working all night is difficult for Esma physically and it also forces her to reluctantly spend less time with her daughter. Still haunted by violent events in her past, Esma attends group therapy sessions at the local Women’s Center. In addition to relying on her best friend Sabina, Esma also finds a kindred spirit in Pelda, a compassionate male co-worker from the nightclub. Feisty tomboy Sara begins to put soccer aside as she develops a close friendship with classmate Samir. The two sensitive young teenagers feel a strong bond because both lost their fathers in the war. But Samir is surprised to hear Sara doesn’t know the details of her father’s noble death. Sara’s father becomes an issue when she requires the certificate proving he died a shaheed, a holy war martyr, so that she can receive a discount for an upcoming school trip. Esma claims acquiring the certificate is difficult since his body has yet to be found. Meanwhile, Esma searches desperately to borrow money to pay for Sara’s trip. Confused Sara becomes violently upset when some classmates tease her for not being on the list of martyrs’ children. Realizing her mother has paid full price for the school trip, Sara aggressively demands the truth. Esma breaks down and brutally explains how the girl was conceived through rape in a POW camp. As painful as their confrontation is, it is Esma’s first real step toward overcoming her deep trauma. Despite Sara’s hurt, there is still an opening for a renewed relationship between mother and daughter. -- © Official Site [Less]

Genre: Dramas

Starring: Luna Mijovic, Mirjana Karanovic

Director: Jasmila Zbanic

DVD Info

Release:

Dec 6, 2007

[DVD Details]

Reviews

 
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08/11/07 04:50 AM
Time Out
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A convincing portrait of how ordinary people strive to get on with their lives in the wake of terrible conflict.

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02/17/07 07:19 AM
Matthew Leyland
BBC
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06/30/07 05:14 AM
Michael Wilmington
Chicago Tribune
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06/20/07 03:15 AM
Denver Post
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06/16/07 04:35 AM
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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06/09/07 04:35 AM
MaryAnn Johanson
Flick Filosopher
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05/19/07 04:42 AM
Los Angeles Daily News
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[Director] Zbanic makes the awful seem commonplace and vice versa, while adding ominous shadows to Esma's untold backstory. The war might be over, but fear and hope remain locked in a rapturous stranglehold amidst the rubble.

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05/18/07 05:43 PM
Marc Savlov
Austin Chronicle
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Grbavica increases in power as it progresses. It's a movie about the ways in which people yearn for healing and about the many obstacles that work to prevent it.

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05/18/07 05:41 PM
Robert Denerstein
Denver Rocky Mountain News
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Like its music, the film's emotions proceed from lament to screaming screed to chorus of hope.

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05/04/07 05:06 PM
Carrie Rickey
Philadelphia Inquirer
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This is a slice of Bosnian life, a powerful peek at average people trying to live their average lives despite the extraordinary and unthinkable things that lie in their past.

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05/04/07 05:05 PM
Winda Benedetti
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
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Lovely in its understatement, quietly but insistently demanding that Esma's story, and those of too many other women, finally be told.

Full Review | Comment
05/02/07 04:18 PM
Sean Burns
Philadelphia Weekly
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There's really nothing new about the way Grbavica looks at the mother-daughter dynamic. But it's still refreshing to see any film that does so with such honesty and realism.

Full Review | Comment
04/27/07 02:48 PM
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
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Zbanic telegraphs parts of the drama a little too easily, but she draws heartbreaking performances from Karanovic and Mijovic.

Full Review | Comment
04/27/07 12:08 PM
Sean Means
Salt Lake Tribune
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While Grbavica concerns a legacy of hatred, it's also optimistic about Bosnia's physical and emotional reconstruction. If the film's final image doesn't move you, you'd better check your pulse.

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04/13/07 05:59 PM
Jeff Shannon
Seattle Times
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The kind of well-meaning film that actually gives well-meaning films a good name.

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04/11/07 08:32 AM
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
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Jasmila Zbanic also deserves our admiration for casting Karanovic, and for making a film of great power about the fate of that ultimate contradiction -- a child born out of hatred.

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04/09/07 03:15 AM
Beverly Berning
culturevulture.net
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The portrayal of a wounded society is compelling, and the film ends on a very modestly hopeful note, appropriate for a country where the 'dreams' have been mostly painful.

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03/30/07 05:49 PM
Walter V. Addiego
San Francisco Chronicle
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...a little powerhouse of a movie whose slow gentle build reaches quite a stunning conclusion.

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03/10/07 12:41 PM
Laura Clifford
Reeling Reviews
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The admirable feminist agenda occasionally trips up the narrative, but the film's performances keep it on track.

Full Review | Comment
03/09/07 02:44 PM
Ty Burr
Boston Globe
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