THE POWDER KEG

English Title: THE POWDER KEG

From road rage to crimes of passion between best friends and lovers, the urban nightmare of sudden, unleashed violence is the theme uniting Goran Paskaljevic's twilight mosaic. The interlocked characters – some the hunters, most the hunted – come together on one eventful night in Belgrade during a lull in the recent armed conflict in the Balkans. Fearful refugees, cabaret performers, prodigal sons, surly punks, junkies, criminal gangs, and taxi and bus drivers all dwell in a city that seems all shadows, neon lights, rain, and revenge. Here a sparring-match at a gym can erupt into a deadly showdown and the volatile combination of drugs, alcohol, and ready guns prime 500-year-old hostilities to inflame anew. News broadcasts and muttered dialogue mention that a hemisphere away, in a place called Dayton, Ohio, delegates from the opposing sides in the Bosnian civil war are trying to hammer out a peace accord. THE POWDER KEG draws a parallel between simple street brawls and the genocidal Bosnian civil war, and asks, can the chains of hatred be broken? The fuse is lit and burning. (In Serbo Croatian with English subtitles)