Venturing into No Man's Land

In the 19th century, Prince Otto von Bismarck addressed the House of Commons and foreshadowed, "If there ever is another war in Europe, it will come out of some damned silly thing in the Balkans." Although often referenced in regards to World War I, the quote resonates with No Man's Land, a dark comedy about the Bosnian-Serbian war of the 1990s.

No Man's Land recounts the story of Ciki, a Bosnian, and Nino, a Serb, who find themselves stuck in a trench somewhere between enemy lines. Early on, they engage in a confrontation in which an armed Ciki (Branko Djuric) forces an unarmed Nino (Rene Bitorajac) to admit that the Serbs started the war. The admission occurs with a comedic edge, but the encounter itself sets up the message of the film--the way we view war is distilled by an imperfect media lens that focuses on who is winning, who has weapons and the drama of mortal conflict--not the actual concept of mortality.

Look no further than our current skirmish--the coverage looks more like pre-game football analysis than a conflict in which many lives are going to be lost.

The film plays out its own game. Ciki finds one of his comrades also lying in the trench, on top of something called a "bouncy mine"--an American-made landmine that explodes above the ground in order to maximize damage. In a way strangely reminiscent of Public Policy Studies 55's strategic analyses, Ciki and Nino devise a plan to save the life of the third man. The plan goes horribly awry when the United Nations steps in and the media hears about the story and commands a widespread exploitation.

The characters that represent the U.N. forces and the media add to the enjoyment of the film and to a general audience frustration with how war is portrayed. The United Nations wants to look powerful and unscathed by every battle, and the media have many agendas. That of the stardom-seeking reporter is the one we see most closely--two instantly dislikable characters whose encompassing caricatures provide all the hate you can handle.

In the end, some of the humor of No Man's Land is difficult to take. Although it's nice to joke about languages and cultures and the selfish actions of people on both sides of war, by the end of the film it's too easy to laugh. Shots of the Slovenian countryside and the ravished nation ground the film, reminding us that war can also be exploited by well-meaning filmmakers.