In the Land of Blood and Honey (2011)

From NetFlix:

Danijel, a Bosnian Serb soldier serving under his father’s command, reunites with Ajla, a Bosnian Muslim woman he was involved with before the war, when she is captured by his camp and forced to work as a sex slave.

Most wars are not one-sided. Of course, there are exceptions: the Nazi Holocaust was one-sided. Behind the Serbian slaughter of the Bosnians are many years of conflicts and offenses on both sides. History is not the point here, but rather the review of a film.

Angelina Jolie has done a marvelous job creating an engrossing view of the war as seen from the side of the Serb killers while maintaining a clever ambivalence in the experience of Danijel. Danijel’s relation with his fanatic warrior father and Ajla, his Muslim lover, make for a difficult contrast. He is so torn between both loyalties that he finds himself trapped in personal conflict.

You are hereby warned that this is, to say the least, a difficult film to watch. If you are the slightest bit squeamish, DO NOT SEE THIS FILM! You will encounter nudity, many rapes (one of the principle Serbian weapons), and Serbian sadism.

For this film to have a satisfying end would be impossible.

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