Shot Through the Heart

Shot Through the Heart is certainly not classic Hollywood in the sense that the film does not burden itself with political and historical realities and constructs a melodramatic story far from reality. Still, it is not a film that would bring me joy and with which I could identify. The basic theme, the division of three close friends by a war conflict, ending up on opposite sides of the barricade, has been done many times in cinema, and much better. In the case of Yugoslavia, it is worth mentioning Occupation in 26 Pictures, which was significantly more developed, darker, and more emotional. Shot Through the Heart is a low-budget TV movie with corresponding visuals, which might not be a problem because a sniper duel can have a static dimension and a well-written script and director can build up a huge amount of tension. However, the behavior of the main character and his moral dilemma are implausible, and the filmmakers captured the realities of Bosnia from a distance and were influenced by the international public opinion, which was overly clear about the causes and course of the conflict. It's not about Serbs not committing war crimes, by the way - theirs were, considering the military advantage, greater and more systematic - but war crimes were committed by all warring parties in places where conditions allowed. Not to mention the roots of the war, which the film addresses with the approach of "it just happened." In the end, Shot Through the Heart is just an average TV movie that captivates with a few emotional scenes of civilians being hit by sniper bullets in the streets of Sarajevo. Overall impression: 45%. (20.09.2010)