No Man’s Land, arguably the most successful film in the history of Bosnian cinema, was actually misunderstood by many in the West, being a serious drama mistaken for a black comedy. The opposite thing happened with Fuse (originally Gori vatra or “Fire Is Burning”), 2003 Bosnian film written and directed by Pjer Žalica.
Fuse, like No Man’s Land, deals with Bosnian War, but indirectly, by showing its devastating aftermath. Plot is set in 1997, two years since Dayton Peace Treaty ended hostilities by dividing Bosnia-Herzegovina into two entities – Republic of Srpska, dominated by Bosnian Serbs; and Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina, shared by Bosniak (Muslims) and Bosnian Croats. Predominately Bosniak town of Tešanj is situated near Inter-Entity Boundary Line. War devastations and closeness of border makes smuggling the only profitable economic activity in town and the organised crime involves local authorities and police. Everything changes with the news that US President Bill Clinton would visit Tešanj, so town suddenly must present itself as a model of multiculturalism, tolerance, rule of law and other noble aims international diplomats insists on being implemented in peacetime Bosnia. As authorities scramble to turn their town into Potemkin village, even recruiting wartime Serb enemies from the neighbouring town, those plans might be endangered by Zaim (played by Bogdan Diklić), middle-aged man who went insane over his son getting killed by Serbs during the war. His surviving son Faruk (played by Enis Bešlagić) is firefighter who, as a part of a ruse, is forced to work together with his Bosnian Serb colleagues from the other side of the line.
Fuse is better film than No Man’s Land, at least for those who would like to learn more about Bosnian War, because, unlike Danis Tanović’s Oscar-winning drama, it gives something like a background to the conflict, even if such background is represented through microcosm of small Bosniak town. This background is represented through number of colourful characters, all of them affected by war, albeit in different ways – some, like Zaim, have lost everything; some, like criminals and corrupt officials, became rich and, some like Faruk, just want to survive. Although there are constant reminders of war and war-related dangers that still lurk and threaten people with violence, the tone is generally positive and Žalica maintains humorous approach despite apparently being critical of the state of post-war Bosnia. Fuse semi-ironically reminds audience of Bosnia’s past in Communist Yugoslavia, another multi-ethnic country whose concept of “Brotherhood and Unity” utterly failed and draws parallels with new US-imposed order. Žalica makes references to Yugoslav leader Tito and his cult of personality, which is, years after the war replaced by another charismatic saviour in the form of iconic US President who is supposed to bring another, this more successful, form of multi-ethnic utopia in form of liberal democracy. While the film suggests that those efforts, embodied in character of pompous foreign official (played by Austrian actor Hubert Kramar) might prove just as illusory, Žalica keeps at least some glimmer of hope that people will enough decency and common sense to find some sort of closure and ways to live again with each other. Positive mood is maintained through energetic acting performances with Enes Bešlagić, who would soon become one of most popular television actors in ex-Yugoslav countries, standing out among mostly unknown cast. Another great assett of the film is the music, which includes humorous and charming rendition of “House of the Rising Sun” and original soundtrack by Saša Lošić, former vocalist of Plavi orkestar, one of the most popular rock bands of 1980s Yugoslavia. His song “Iznad Tešnja zora sviće”, with its lyrics that are both cheerful and ironic, became a great hit in and outside Bosnia, transcending former frontlines and, in a way, achieving something that characters and many other pompous dramas about Bosnian War could not.
RATING: 8/10 (+++)
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