THE REJECT
2007

March 2, 2008
San Jose Cinequest Film Festival 18
Serbia
Serbo-Croatian
103 Minutes
Drama
Milos Radivojevic

Sometimes people call a film "challenging" if its not obviously good at first but is worthwhile sticking with until the credits roll. This film appears to be challenging simply for sake of being challenging. Heads nor tails can be made of this dark, dreary, head-scratching film about a lady's man's final days. At least I think that's what it's about. Old-school Serbian bank manager, who enjoys the finer things the black market can bring him, like booze and cigars, is chased by black-clad semi-demonic, semi-matrixy beings. He's fired from his job by his incredibly sexy boss who tells him he's too honest to make it in modern day Serbia. (One compelling reason (er, the only compelling reason) to sit through this film at all is to see this woman in all her glory during their sex scene.) The main character begins to win at the casino, win his estranged daughter's heart back, pay back debts, find a sense of clarity, and all of these things put together can only mean he's dying or already dead. Or can it mean something completely different? I have no clue. The music doesn't help. It's full of Serbia's answer to Daft Punk, and never matches the story or pacing on screen.

Dark and dreary, THE REJECT's story may be "too Serbian" for this American to figure out. Or it might just suck.

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