Urban prompts her Grandma Elena to tell of the time she stole the goose with the gypsies. It helps that many of her interviewees – particularly the two grandmothers and a colourful aunt – are natural storytellers who effortlessly bring to life their recollections of before and during the war in Yugoslavia, with vivid details and no small degree of humour. Now living in Sweden, Urban approaches the rediscovery and reckoning of the country of her birth through the minds and the memories of family and friends. Rewarding, thought-provoking and timely, this could prove to be a title of considerable interest to documentary specialist distributors. Her first feature-length documentary, The Eclipse won the top prize at CPH:DOX and should find a warm reception on the festival circuit, where further awards are a possibility.
Urban is best known for her mid-length documentary work, including the multi-award-winning Journey Of A Red Fridge (co-directed with Lucian Muntean), about a 17-year-old porter in the mountains of Nepal. Peace and stability, the picture argues, are precarious states which can be taken for granted until they are no longer there. It is an elegant metaphor for the seismic shift in the psychology of a country struggling with the legacy of war, the fear of the ‘other’ and crimes committed in the name of nationalism. The public barricaded themselves inside, blocking out the lunar shadow, brainwashed by the media into a state of apprehension and suspicion about this rare event. The second, the total solar eclipse of August 11, 1999, was met by fear and superstition in the Serb Republic of former Yugoslavia.
#ECLIPSE IDE REVIEWS FULL#
The first, in 1961, was vaunted as an exciting scientific phenomenon: “the eclipse is magnificent and deserves our full attention” was the line from the Yugoslav authorities. The film takes its title, and a core theme from not one but two eclipses. Natasa Urban’s intricate patchwork portrait of the Serbian national psyche is a deft balance between deeply personal shared intimacies and a potent account of a drift toward nationalism and conflict which could hardly be more globally relevant.
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