Before the Rain
Pred doždot
France, United Kingdom, Macedonia
1994
113 Min
Color
1.78:1
Albanian, Macedonian, English
Synopsis
The first film made in the newly independent Republic of Macedonia, Milcho Manchevski’s Before the Rain crosscuts the stories of an orthodox Christian monk (Grégoire Colin), a British photo agent (Katrin Cartlidge), and a native Macedonian war photographer (Rade Šerbedžija) to paint a portrait of simmering ethnic and religious hatred about to reach its boiling point. Made during the strife of the war-torn Balkan states in the nineties, this gripping triptych of love and violence is also a timeless evocation of the loss of pastoral innocence, and remains one of recent cinema’s most powerful laments on the futility of war. —The Criterion Collection
Director
Milčo Mančevski
Milčo Mančevski was born in Skopje, Macedonia and studied cinema and photography at Southern Illinois University. He began his career directing music videos and short films before making his feature film debut, Before the Rain (94), which won many awards, including the Golden Lion and FIPRESCI Prize at the Venice International Film Festival and an Academy Award® nomination for best foreign language film. His other films are Dust (01), Shadows (07) and Mothers (10). –TIFF
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Displaying 4 of 6 wall posts.
cineaste
6Aug12
"A circle is not round" No. It is a tidily crooked continuum, like an M.C. Escher etching.
faornelas likes this
Judicial Joe
26Aug11
Not as profound as Kusturica or Godard's take on the Bosnian Wars, but still well shot and decently acted. The second part initially seems quite racist, but makes sense in context. Grade: C.
Justin Oakey
23Aug11
An absolutely stunning debut that chronicles the lives of characters living in the war-torn Balkans in the nineties. Mančevski utilizes his reality, that is the pubescence of the nation of Macedonia, to evoke the loss of innocence in his characters and their world. Very powerful.
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Untitled
By Teddy Cheong on April 25, 2009
From what I’ve read at Criterion, this is deemed the first film made in the new Republic of Macedonia which officially seceded from Yugoslavia in ‘91. I thought it’d be interesting to check out based… read review
Untitled
By Scarier than Frankenstein on December 22, 2008
Before the Rain is a timeless ode to the futility of war. A triptych which remains suspended in the consciousness of the viewer long after the credits rolls. For here is a film with, no end? – or maybe… read review
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BEFORE THE RAIN
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DVD
Buy the DVD from The Criterion Collection.
