Alive!

Koli is a handsome university student who hails from a poor village. He seems to have it all, including a modern place in Tirana and an attentive girlfriend. Suddenly, his family calls him home for his father's funeral. While he's still grieving over this unexpected death, Koli's relatives reveal some news that makes his blood run cold: his family has been embroiled for decades in an archaic blood feud with another clan. With his father buried, Koli is the head of his family, and his enemies will seek revenge for a murder committed by his grandfather 60 years ago. The shocked student refuses to take the situation seriously, but warning shots soon convince him he needs to arm himself. Koli escapes to Tirana from this backwater in an attempt to regain control of his life, but his fate seems not to lie in his own hands. ALIVE! is harshly critical of the blood feuds that have returned to rural Albania since the fall of Communism, effectively placing more than 20,000 men and boys under an ever-present sentence of death. (In Albanian with subtitles) – B.B.