Depressing, mind-boggling and unique

Rating: 10/10 (2 November 2006)

Idri I Smotri is the most horrifying war movie you'll ever see. No, I have not seen every war movie but I've seen many and none of them were remotely close to this.
If an American war movie is considered anti-war, you usually see really gruesome stuff happening to soldiers. American movie wars are fought in computer servers, a totally unpopulated battlefield were the troops can run around and kill each other. If a movie shows bad stuff happening to civilians, it's always limited and often implied.
Idri I Smotri goes all out and shows you the whole thing. Rape, murder, massacre, brutality in every way imaginable. There is very little plot, a tool to further show the randomness and confusion of war. The happenings on screen are often bizarre and unexpected, and dialog is confused, desperate, hopeless and often barely human.
On top of the ghastly pictures is a whine, drone, noise, call it what you will. I'm guessing someone call's it "soundtrack" but that's too generous. It's nauseating, and very effective.
Acting is extremely believable, characters feel real as life. That doesn't mean they are likable, rational or enjoyable, but they're undoubtedly there, experiencing first-hand what we are seeing filtered through or TV screen.
I will never forget this movie. It leaves a mental scar in your mind which takes a few days to recover from and you'll probably never recover fully. If you've seen movies like "Saving Private Ryan" or "We were soldiers" and felt they were too strong, DON'T watch this movie. If you never feel terribly affected by movies, well, you'll soon know what it's like.