Sunday, September 17, 2006

And as Radovan Karadzic...

As everyone knows there is going to be a new film starring Richard Gere as an American reporter who on his own tries to find poet-cum-war criminal.

There are still some unanswered questions about the film.
The first is whether (if anyone) will play the role of Radovan Karadzic. Personally, I don't think they need to cast the part, especially since Karadzic (as of the filming) has not been apprehended. There are a wealth of videotapes and interviews featuring the real Karadzic that they could use.

The second question is whether this film, with looks to be a dark comedy/buddy film is the right vehicle considring the very serious nature of the war and of the crimes Karadzic is accused of. While I understand the concern of those who are fearful that such a film may inadvertently show disrespect to such a serious issue; I don't share their concern. The film "No Man's Land" contained a lot of dark humor and sarcasm, but I think the most memorable part of the film (besides the closing sequence) was the actual news clip of Karadzic saying that the Muslims of Bosnia would not survive is war came to BiH. The clip was short, but in my opinion, very effective.
I hope this film also includes a few actual newsclips from the Bosnian War and of Karadzic speaking, so the audience, who is there primarily to see Richard Gere knows a little bit more about why we are searching for Karadzic. Besides the blanket statement of "he's an alleged war criminal." It is important to at least give a cursory explanation of what crimes he is accused of.

The $20,000 question of course is whether this film would lead to further interest in Karadzic and whether the interest could possibly lead to his wearabouts being revealed and his eventual arrest. The answer to the first one is, in my opinion, yes. The film on Karadzic will lead to more editorials and articles in various news media on Karadzic and the search for Karadzic. Whether the interest will lead to his wearabouts being revealed is much more unlikely. Karadzic evidently has a strong circle of support, and I doubt that the film about the search for Karadzic will lead to the capture of the actual Karadzic.

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