Comrades, Join the ... Party ... Opaaaaaaa !

Rating: 10/10 (11 January 2011)

"Underground" is an epic tale of absurdity directed by Emir Kusturica using the tragedy of his motherland, who used to be called Yugoslavia, as the backdrop of the film. The history of this country can be compared to a deep wound that still can't be healed up. The land has been tortured, invaded, raped in her soul by the circumstances of History, it's still bleeding yet people never stopped to sing, to dance, to love, to believe in a brighter future. Such a personal story, so deeply rooted in Kusturica's heart, could have been told in a sad, dark and quite depressing tone, but a sad movie, "Underground" is not. And a hilarious imaginative poignant comedy, it sure is.
Emir Kusturica's Golden Palm Winner is a masterpiece of flamboyance, of decadence and non-stop dance ... a never-ending party that revisits the tragedy of History and translates it into an epic, romantic and frenetic comedy, so damn entertaining these isn't a single moment I didn't want to get up on the table and start to dance with a glass on my hand, to Goran Bergovic's incredible soundtrack. Indeed, this film is full of music, of energy, of emotions and transports us into a fantastic journey in the tragic History of Yugoslavia, following a chronological road : World War II, the Cold War and of course, the Modern War. This final act is depicted in a darker tone, to highlight the loss of every thing that made Yugoslavia, a land of hope, of optimism and fraternity. But, never letting war and death pushing our mood down, Kusturica ends the film in an apotheosis. A great finale for a great movie about life and hope, to keep a great smile in your face until the end ... which the film doesn't have, because there's less optimism with an ending than with the belief of a rebirth after the mutilation of a never-ending war.
But "Underground" isn't a documentary about this war, or about Yugoslavia. Basically, it's the story of a love triangle and an evil scheme. It starts with two men, two friends : Marko, the sympathetic opportunistic intellectual and his best friend Blacky who's just joined the Party, Blacky is an electrician, a lovable naive buffoon with a warm heart and a head made of stone. Marko and Blacky are both members of the Communist Party and resistant fighters after the partial destruction of the country by the German invasion. Those men love to drink, to dance, and more than that, they love the same woman : the actress Natalja. Natalja is a young, pretty, ambitious woman with many lovers, a Nazi officer, Blacky, her future husband and Marko her future lover. They're all flawed, exuberant, yet always sympathetic. But the lyric soul of the film is Yvan, Marko's brother, an innocent zoo guardian with a stammer and who developed a strange relationship with a monkey, Soni. He loves his brother, he's sweet and tender, and maybe he believes in animals more than men whose cruelty touched him deep in the heart. He seems to be the only who cares for what happens and carries the tragedy in his pure heart.
After liberating Blacky from the Germans, Marko hides him in the cave, "underground", until the war stops ... Then Marko, who's been previously struck by Natalja's beauty will elaborate one of the most evil schemes ever plotted in film, just to keep her. He'll make all the population who lived, who were born and grew up in the cave, participate to the War Effort by making weapons for the Resistance ... even after the Liberation when the Allies achieved to destroy what the Germans left. Ivan, hidden in the cave, doesn't know the War is over. Blacky doesn't know the Iron Curtrain is drawn now and he's a dead legend above the ground. He doesn't even know that his best friend, is very close to Tito, and a respectable member of the Party, married to Natalja, an acclaimed actress.
Natalja drowns her guilt and her loss of innocence in alcohol, she's weak but she's already been ... Natalja is a beautiful girl flirting with the enemy, married to a man, and having a love affair with another. She and Marko are both opportunistic, they understand each other. She can't hate him because he "lies so well". It's not her fault, she can't control her seductive power. Natalja is like an allegory of a beautiful country invaded numerous times during history, a country that doesn't know where her heart belongs anymore. Blacky and the poor victims of Comrade Marko lived in a cave during the Communism years, did they really miss more than those who lived above the ground ? The scheme is so evil Marko has an accomplice who found a trick to make time go slower, like life in an oppressive time make it seem slower. A diabolical absurd scheme, but no more or no less than the reality ... what better alibi for absurdity than war? Hot or Cold? War is ABSURD enough to inspire such acts ... The story is simply a fascinating metaphor of the more serious tragic fate of Kusturica's bruised motherland.
But despite this sadness, the movie is about hope, joy and optimism ... these are the happiest and most cheerful people you'll see in a film, even during War, even when they fight, even in a cave, living years and years without seeing the sunlight, don't prevent them from amusement, dances, laughs, plays and everything that makes life worth to live ... the movie is a big Prison you never want to escape from. It's thrilling to watch, it's an optimistic tale for a tragic story ... you'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll laugh and laugh and shout and fight and dance and have an extraordinary cinematic experience ....
So, comrades, just have a glass and join the "party" ... Opaaaaaaaa!