Tito and Me

James Berardinelli

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10-year old Zoran (Dimitrie Vojnov) is growing up in 1954 Yugoslavia, a country under the tyrannical thumb of Communist Marshall Tito (Voja Brajovic). Zoran has chosen Tito as a hero-figure, writing in a school composition that he loves the Marshall even more than his own mother (Anica Dobra) and father (Predrag Manojlovic). This earns him a spot in a group making a walking tour of the land of Tito's roots, in which, not coincidentally, his girlfriend, Jasna (Milena Vukosav), is also participating. Under the leadership of the overly-zealous Comrade Raja (Lazar Ristovski), the tour becomes more of a trial than a pleasure, and Zoran learns what it is to be disillusioned.

In a year that has seen numerous male coming-of-age stories, this is one of the better foreign entries. However, instead of going for the nostalgia and sentimentality that many such movies attempt, Tito and Me is a straightforward tale with a light touch and a serious message. Zoran is forced to face the disappointing truth that childhood heros are often self-constructed icons with personalities nothing like those attributed to them by a worshipful youth.

The most interesting portion of Tito and Me is the first half, which concentrates on Zoran's home and school life. His initial relationship with Jasna is presented realistically, with all the uncertainty of a child's first crush, and the confused interaction of the two families living within Zoran's house is both funny and poignant. The latter half of the film deals with the walking tour through Yugoslavia's hinterlands, and is only fitfully successful bringing Zoran's disillusionment to the fore. Some of the comedy during these sequences seems out-of-place and occasionally cruel.

Zoran's loss of innocence develops through his changing impression of the group's leader, Comrade Raja, the perfect image of Tito. Raja takes a dislike to the earnest young boy, making him the object of his scorn. Soon, everyone in the group has turned their backs on Zoran, including Jasna.

The film is seasoned with comedy -- some overt, but much subtle. Tito and Me often succeeds because of its light tone; a lugubrious movie with the same message would seem preachy. Perhaps the only obvious mistake is that instead of creating a believably-menacing Raja, the choice was made to turn him into a caricature. Indeed, with the exception of Lazar Ristovski, whose buffoonish Raja is over-the- top, the acting is excellent. Young Dimitrie Vojnov should especially be singled out for his unaffected performance as Zoran. It is in large part due to his effortless portrayal that Tito and Me is effective.

Tito and Me is a fine, fresh motion picture with a universal theme. You don't have to have been raised in 1954 Yugoslavia to understand or enjoy this movie, which has a deceptively strong message for something with such a breezy tone.

From movie-reviews.colossus.net

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