'Savior' tells a poignant story of Yugoslav conflict

By JODI ARNESON
Staff Writer

"Savior" is one of the most unsettling films released in some time. The movie is a gaping wound and one may expect to feel victimized and emotionally violated after its viewing. "Savior" is more in your face than most documentaries and, in its rawness, escapes its own genre of dramatic action. Director Predrag Antonijevic creates a film that moves into something more formidable than the "inspired by a true story" war films to which we are accustomed. "Savior" steps into reality.

Joshua Rose (Dennis Quaid) is thrown into a state of rage and despair after he loses his wife (Natassja Kinski) and son in a Muslim terrorist bombing. To avenge their death, he storms into a neighborhood mosque and murders a group of praying Muslims. Both Josh and fellow U.S. Military official Peter (Stellan Skarsgard) flee Paris to become mercenaries in the Foreign Legion. Here, Josh surrenders his identity to become Guy, a man we all may be capable of becoming if our surroundings were filled with hatred and hopelessness. Guy is a victim as much as an active participant in the atrocities of his grinding paramilitary life.

Guy's journey of redemption begins when he saves a raped and pregnant Serbian woman from the fatal kicks of a steel boot. After being kicked over and over again by Guy's partner, Vera (Natasa Ninkovic) gives birth to an infant. Refusing to look at her child, she moves toward the three-foot gun beside her to look for a way out of her broken, shamed life. After Vera's suicide, Guy turns away from the war-ravaged life he once believed would avenge his family's murder and becomes a savior to the orphaned infant, who transforms his life into one of protection, thought and retribution.

This movie stands alone from the rest of its type not because of its effects, scenery or plot, but because of its genuine nature. From Quaid's slight overacting at times to Ninkovic's hoarse voice, the film catches something real. Like that scratchy wool sweater we refuse to throw away, it brushes up against the skin and chafes our perceptions. At one point, Guy suffocates the child to keep her quiet. Upon reviving her, he weeps uncontrollably. In this scene, Quaid reaches into his gut and brings himself to the screen. This is a movie where we truly feel for the protagonist, and his emotions take us back to a clean slate where we are impelled to value life regardless of traffic jams, bad hair days or ridiculous essay prompts.

Although this movie is not perfect, its imperfections lend sustenance to the raw, unrefined and harsh nature of the film. The initial scenes seem strained and there are moments of unnecessary drama. While the soundtrack borders on being too overt, it skillfully punctuates the film's meaningful moments. And the editing, performed on older splicing equipment, does not achieve the glossy appearance of many modern-day films. Combined, these awkward elements fall into place exactly where they should. They cede attention to the more subtle effects of war.

At one point, Vera returns home to her family and Guy witnesses her rejection. Her father hands her a gun and says, "No one is stopping you." Because the family honor has been destroyed, a man is forced to reject his own daughter. These instances, Antonijevic said about the movie, concern the greater ramifications of war.

Perhaps even more disturbing than the film is the fact that all of the events that take place are nonfictional. Screenwriter Robert Orr worked as a photographer's assistant and traveled throughout southern Bosnia and Croatia during the Yugoslavian conflict. In his travels, he met the inspiration for Guy; a French-American ex-Foreign Legion sniper who told the story of how the only bullet that ever wounded him was for a child he saved during battle. The events that occurred during his experience combined with the director's experience brought "Savior" to the screen.

As Quaid said of the film, "It stares its subject matter in the face and doesn't blink." "Savior" provides a story and an image that cuts through our ivory tower academia, and provides a message we can return to time and again to restore our humanity.

Copyright 1998 by the Daily Trojan. All rights reserved.
This article was published in Vol. 135, No. 54 (Thursday, November 19, 1998), beginning on page 7 and ending on page 9.