Underground – A Madcap Satire of 50 years of Yugoslav History

Underground

Underground Film Difficulty Ranking: 3

Why Watch Underground?

  • For a crazy Yugoslav history lesson
  • If you’re a fan of eccentric comedy – also found in Italian films, Luis Estrada satires, and Monty Python
  • If you like a good old Brass Band
From: Serbia, Europe
Watch: Trailer, JustWatch, Mubi
Next: Dear Diary, Cosy Dens, The Marriage of Maria Braun

an Eccentric satire

Underground is one madcap film. You get an idea of it’s craziness from the very first scene in which a brass band chases after a horse drawn carriage carrying two brothers drunkenly throwing money and firing guns out the back. It sets the tone for the entire 3 hour film which never misses a moment to try and make the audience laugh or cringe.

The comedy style reminded me of a mix of the loud, argumentative Italian comedies and the slapstick satires of Monty Python. Each scene in Underground contains a bit of both; with shouted arguments between the characters on screen and the eccentric actions that follow them. A great example of this is in the relationship between one of the brothers and his wife. They start playfully in most scenes they’re in, before they inevitably start arguing, and then the interaction ends in a visual gag, such as the man grabbing the bottle of spirits they’ve been arguing over and smashing it on his head so his wife can’t get drunk.

Despite the similarities, Underground‘s humor stands out from it’s Italian and British counterparts in it’s bleakness. The director, Emir Kusturica finds humor in lies, destruction, violence, and even death. It laughs at the characters, such as those that try to hang themselves to escape the inescapably bleak cycle of life in Yugoslavia and not just the state. As a result, it feels even more comically bleak than Luis Estrada’s Mexican satires because it feels more personal. We’re laughing at the people in the film (the people of Yugoslavia) and not just the system they’re stuck living in.

One Crazy Yugoslav History Lesson

You’ll also get a decent overview of Yugoslav history in Underground. It’s split into three sections:

  1. The Nazi invasion in World War Two
  2. Tito’s Communist Yugoslavia
  3. The Balkan Wars in the 1990’s

Part one is titled ‘War’; part two is titled ‘Cold War’; and part three is titled ‘War’ – a dry nod to the inescapable cycle of violence that plagued the country.

The most interesting section is probably the second section in which one of the brothers (Marko) convinces his brothers and neighbors that the war against the Nazis is still going on. Out of their fear for the imaginary Nazis they stay underground and continue to make weapons for the ‘war effort’. Marko’s manipulative control of his countrymen serves as an allegory for Tito’s manipulative control over Yugoslavia. Marko is their trusted link to the outside world and he chooses to keep them ignorant for his own benefit.

A Brass heartbeat of the country

Whatever happens in this film, overground or underground, there’s always a brass band nearby. It kicks off the opening scene, pops up at weddings, and seems to be in the background at any big event in the film. It gives the film a distinct Balkan flavor and it’s comedic heartbeat.

The brass band is also linked to the constant presence of war. ‘Balkan Brass‘ music has military origins as a fusion between folk music and military marching band music. Therefore, it’s constant presence in Underground is a sonic reminder of the constant presence of war in Yugoslavia to further emphasize the inescapable cycle of violence the country is stuck in.

What to Watch Next

Underground‘s eccentric humor reminded me of a lot of films. Most of the time they reminded me of classic Italian comedies such as Lina Wertmuller’s Seven Beauties and Swept Away or Benigni’s Life is Beautiful. Underground also has traces of the offbeat comedies of Nanni Moretti (see Dear Diary) and the even more zany comedies of Monty Python (see Life of Brian).

However, perhaps the closest in terms of historical content is Cosy Dens from the Czech Republic. It’s another a bleak satire of the Communist regime – resembling bits of Underground‘s part two.

If you’re looking for more crime satires, check out Luis Estrada’s El Infierno and The Perfect Dictator or even Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas.

Or if you’re after another epic historical melodrama that spans a few decades, check out Fassbinder’s The Marriage of Maria Braun which switches Yugoslavia for Germany.

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