Dom za vesanje (1988)

User Rating:

8.2/10   

Director:

Emir Kusturica

Writers:

Emir Kusturica (writer)
Gordan Mihic (writer)

Release Date:

9 February 1990 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Drama | Fantasy

Tagline:

"When God came down to earth he could not deal with the gypsies . . . and he took the next flight back"

Plot:

In this luminous tale set in the area around Sarajevo and in Italy, Perhan, an engaging young Romany (gypsy) with telekinetic powers, is seduced by the quick-cash world of petty crime, which threatens to destroy him and those he loves.

Plot Keywords:

Gypsy | Yugoslavia | Reality | Organized Crime | Dream

Awards:

2 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Davor Dujmovic	...	Perhan
Bora Todorovic	...	Ahmed
Ljubica Adzovic	...	Khaditza (Grandmother)
Husnija Hasimovic	...	Merdzan (Uncle)
Sinolicka Trpkova	...	Azra (girlfriend)
Zabit Memedov	...	Zabit (neighbor)
Elvira Sali	...	Danira (sister)
Suada Karisik	...	Dzamila
Predrag Lakovic
Mirsad Zulic
Ajnur Redzepi	...	Perhan's son
Sedrije Halim	...	Ruza, Azra's mother
Saban Rojan
Branko Djuric
Edin Rizvanovic

Also Known As:

Il tempo dei gitani (Italy)
Time of the Gypsies (International: English title)

Runtime:

Yugoslavia:270 min (extended version) | France:136 min (DVD version)

Country:

UK | Italy | Yugoslavia

Language:

Romany | Serbo-Croatian | Italian | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:14 | Australia:M | Netherlands:12 (2007) (DVD) | Argentina:16 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:R | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Forum Sarajevo

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Harry Saltzman: Showman (2000) (V)

"Dom za vesanje" is not worse than "Karmelita"

In Russia we have a fine 300 minutes (without kidding) DVD release of the movie (the director's cut). It has its moments. The first part is hilarious and witty. The second one is absurd and insane. The third is depressing and scary. The forth is enterprising and weird. The last one is violent and tragic. To crown it all, the only reason that this feature is an outsider (it is not in IMDb top 250) seems to be the following: not many people saw it.

The movie has very adult topics and it is realistic. The Gypsies look and act like Gypsies. We had some serial here in Russia (this year) called "Karmelita", where the Gypsies were shown so civilized, so snobbish, so stylish in their dressing, so good-looking, so reliable, and so boring. They were talking and talking (in pure Russian, of course, phonetically perfect, of course) showing less emotion than lamas. Personally, very thankful to my relatives that they did not spend the time of their lives watching that never ending fiction. The title song in that "Gypsy" serial was sung by Mr Nikolay Baskov (a real "Gypsy" with blond hair). It lasted as long as 200+ parts mixed with good portion of commercials. Instead of prolonged showing of the "epic" "Karmelita" our TV should have shown "Dom za vesanje" (it means 5 parts instead of 200 plus, but what five - serious and entertaining five). On the other hand, they would have spoiled the whole movie by pushing commercials into it.

The range of emotions while watching "Dom za vesanje" can be described as "funny like hell" to "scary like hell". The only bad thing about this movie seems to be the way of its DVD presentation: after the end of each part there is a kind of sketch of the following part, that is shown before the credits roll over. These spoilers are not very enjoyable.

10 out of 10 for the poesy of human existence in hellish surroundings. Thanks for attention.