Having just recently been to both Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia just over a week ago – most specifically Sarajevo where much of the destruction from the war took place – I’m highly anticipating Angelina Jolie’s directorial debut of In the Land of Blood and Honey. The actress not only directed this epic story about the 1992 conflict between the two countries, but wrote it as well. Yes, she really does do it all.
I was privileged enough to learn much about the history of the war and walk the path of many soldiers who lost their lives. So you can imagine this film will have a great impact on me. What makes it more interesting – and also what prompted a lot of distress in both countries while filming – is that the story not only touches on the violence of the war, but focus’ on a love story between a Bosnian-Muslim woman and a Serbian man who fall in love and are forced to split at the beginning of the war.
Angelina chose to cast unknown actors Goran Kostic and Zana Marjanovic and the film will be featured in both English and the Bosnia-Croatian-Serbian language. The trailer is extremely powerful, and I urge you to watch it. Angelina faced many obstacles to get this movie made, and her will and determination to tell a story about love and violence during an epic historical time prevailed. The film is slated for a North American release December 23rd and I highly recommend a quick history recap to familiarize yourself with what happened during this time – which incredibly wasn’t all that long ago. Check out the trailer below.