| | |
Features: DVD
Recently screened to critical acclaim at the Cannes Film Festival, Michael Winterbottom's Welcome to Sarajevo invites audiences to enter the world of the international press corps - a group of war correspondents, some jaded, some still innocent, covering the news in one of the most dangerous places on Earth. The unsinkable spirit of this city under siege will leave none of them untouched, and will lead one journalist to shed his objectivity and get involved. News correspondent Michael Henderson (Stephen Dillane) has made a career of covering the world's hot spots, but nothing could have prepared him for what he will experience in Sarajevo. The year is 1992, the beginning of the siege on Sarajevo. The cosmopolitan city that once hosted the Winter Olympics and served as a popular European vacation spot has come under attack from groups of Bosnian Serbs fighting to overturn Bosnian independence. Where cafes and boutiques once stood, there is now a danger zone of snipers and mortar attacks. Where people once shopped and ate in restaurants, there is now no water and little food. In this city where many different cultures once lived together in peace, neighbors are now killing neighbors. Based on true stories, Welcome to Sarajevo introduces British stage star Stephen Dillane in the lead role of journalist Michael Henderson. Woody Harrelson co-stars as Flynn, a renowned American journalist also reporting on the war.
"It's simple, short and brutal, and it chillingly ends without comment. " Barbara Shulgasser, San Francisco Examiner
"...absolutely convincing..." Brian Webster, Apollo Leisure Guide
"...rewarding..." Leonard Maltin
Editor's Note
Michael Winterbottom's ingenious drama, adapted by journalist Michael Nicholson from his memoir NATASHA'S STORY, concerns the horrific bloodshed that broke out in Yugoslavia in the early 1990s. Most specifically, the film focuses its attention on Bosnia, the capital of Sarajevo, when the violence was its most intense and unpredictable. The story follows a group of journalists who spend their days braving the front lines, searching for footage that will guarantee them a prime slot on their local newscast. Stephen Dillane plays Michael Henderson, a disillusioned English war reporter working alongside cameraman Gregg (James Nesbitt) and producer Jane (Kerry Fox). The trio immediately befriends their new driver, Risto (Goran Visnjic), while contending with Flynn (Woody Harrelson), a hotshot American who is more interested in individual glory than the war itself. When Nina (Marisa Tomei), a relief worker, arrives to shuttle a busload of children out of the country, Henderson takes it upon himself to smuggle out Emira (Emira Nusevic), an apparent orphan, risking his life in the process. With WELCOME TO SARAJEVO, Winterbottom cleverly combines documentary footage of the horrific acts of "ethnic cleansing" with a more traditional story, resulting in a highly original motion picture that aims to shed light on the tragic civil war that ravaged Yugoslavia.
| Features | Audio: English Dolby Digital Surround Sound | | Documentary: "Locked And Loaded" | | Scene Selection | | Interactive Menus |
| Technical Info
|
Release Information
| | Studio: Buena Vista |
| Release Date: 4/5/2005 |
| Running Time: 102 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 1997 | | Catalog ID: 2163303 | | UPC: 00786936144567 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | 2.35:1 |
| Cast & Crew
| Awards |
Cannes Film Festival (1997) | | | Michael Winterbottom, Nominee, Golden Palm Award | |
Chicago International Film Festival (1997) | | | Michael Winterbottom, Nominee, Best Film |
|
| | Professional Reviews | USA Today
"...[A] visceral climax....It keeps its focus..." -- 3 out of 4 stars 11/26/1997 p.9DFilm Comment
"...[The film has an] emotive power..." 07/01/1997 p.3 Entertainment Weekly
"...Emotionally engaging..." 05/30/1997 p.50-1 New York Times
"...Mr. Winterbottom presents a gonzo guided tour of life under fire....Goran Visnjic gives a gently affecting performance and best illustrates the civilians' plight..." 11/26/1997 p.E5 San Francisco Examiner 8 of 10
The movie is well made by director Michael Winterbottom (Jude), with a minimum of overdramati - Barbara Shulgasser
Apollo Leisure Guide 8 of 10
Plenty of perfectly decent people look at film as pure recreation - no place for heaviness or unhapp - Brian Webster
Leonard Maltin's Movie & Video Guide 7 of 10
Achingly realistic, unsentimental look at reporters covering the Bosnian war in Sarajevo. One Britis - Leonard Maltin
|
| |
|
|
|
