Kolonel Bunker
Kay Schlette
Hi everybody!
This afternoon I went to the Hamburg film festival. I've watched a great
film I would like to recommend to you: It's called "Kolonel Bunker" and
it was produced by Kujtim Cashku.
Let's see if I manage to translate the article in the programme review:
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Kolonel Bunker, F/AL/PL 1996. 103 min., producer: Kujtim Cashku, actors:
Agim Qirjaqi, Anna Nehrebecka. (Albanian with English subtitles)
Albania in 1974. The government of the poorest country in Europe has,
after the split with the people's republic of China, fallen out with
almost all nations in the world. Suffering from persecution mania it
feels it is being surrounded by invadors and decides to establish "total
bunkerization" in the country. Roundabout 700.000 bunkers are to be
built rapidly for 3 mln inhabitants. This idiocy that continues until
1981 consumes all of the Albanian resources. Cashku's film concentrates
on Muro Neto, the man who the political bureaucrats choose to make the
nightmare in concrete become true. The soldier hopes that if he fulfils
this task he will afterwards be promoted to general. But "Kolonel
Bunker"'s dreams have to cease to hard reality as the Albanian
government decides to abolish all military ranks. Cashku narrates his
story as a political parable of a special kind. Neto the soldier does
not manage to keep the balance between obedience and scepticism towards
political doctrine and bureaucratic hierarchy. Despite extremely
grotesque elements "Kolonel Bunker" is a deeply human drama - and a
vital sign of life of a cineastic culture yet unknown to us.
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So much for the contents. Personally I must say I was deeply moved by
the darkness in the film. The hopelessness and absurdity is even
stronger than in "L'America". At the end of the film there is
documentary material of the revolution taking place in Tirana and some
scenes taken in the Albania of today. Cashku managed to make me feel
disturbed by the strong colours of Marlboro and Coca-Cola
advertisements, and I've been living in that culture for almost 30 years
now... When I came out of the film and went home by car I was so
desperate that I couldn't stand the pop music on the local radio station
- instead I listened to classical music which I do only very rarely -
and had to call my girlfriend as soon as I arrived home.
If the film is shown in your city - go there and watch it. It's worth
it.
My vote: 10 out of 10 points for Cashku!
Greetings
Kay