SXSW 2010: 'A Serbian Film' review. If you are reading this please understand that it is a warning. You are not going to enjoy this film. If you do enjoy this film then you did not understand it. Never in my life have I seen such unspeakable things recreated in a movie. It’s rare that I have a visceral reaction to something so strong that I am physically ill or queasy. I’ve seen a lot of movies and I have never seen anything quite as disturbing as this. If you are a gore fan you may be thinking to yourself “Awesome, I’m gonna love this movie.” And if somehow you are not rocked to your core by this film then you my friend are a sociopath. So now that you’ve been warned let me tell you about this film.

“A Serbian Film,” is remarkable. It is the story of a retired porn star who is desperate for money for his family. He takes a job that promises him millions but he soon finds out it will cost him more than he bargained for as he is forced to perform terrible acts. To further warn you I will give away one of the tamer scenes in the film. Please keep in mind that what I am about to describe is the tip of the iceberg, that is, it gets soooooo much worse than this!! In one scene a woman has all her teeth pulled out and is forced to perform fellatio on a man with her blood spewing gums until she chokes to death. How can it be any more disturbing than that you wonder?

I mean, that’s one of the most graphically disgusting things I’ve ever heard, but I assure you it is nothing compared to the rest of the film. I hate gratuitous violence in movies, but this film is different. Usually it is just gore for gore’s sake, which I hate. And part of this film is a commentary on that. It is so incredibly extreme because its goal is to make even the most desensitized person feel sick. It is also about fetishism, of violence and of sex. Where does it end? How extreme can humanity get? This film takes you there to show you how disgusting the world really is.