Dorathen Better Late Then Never

CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

Livestonth I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

Mabel Munoz Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in terms of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?

vanillabean349 While it is at times extremely troubling to watch, As If I Am Not There is a startlingly realistic depiction of the Bosnian War. From scenes of whole villages being rounded up and the men murdered, to women being raped and brutalized by soldiers in secluded camps, this movie does an excellent job of representing the types of depravity that took place in the early 1990s. Wilson does not base Samira's story on a specific case, but uses her character to represent an amalgamation of testimonies from survivors. In this way, the events of the movie are not necessarily a 100% accurate representation of a single person's experiences, but they include some of the terrible conditions and actions that these survivors had to endure. For instance, the practice of trading sexual acts for better treatment, food, or living conditions was not necessarily unheard of, but was a means of survival, not pleasure. In the film, Samira's relationship with the Captain causes the viewer to question Samira's moral involvement in the despicable treatment of her fellow inmates. In a similar way, Samira's seemingly compliant attitude and lack of opposition to the Serb forces has drawn some criticism for the film. However, in a women's camp where Samira was kept separate from the majority of the other inmates, it is unlikely that this expectation of a rebellion or opposition would have been possible, and could have even led to greater harm. It is difficult to make moral decisions in situations like those portrayed in this film, and I appreciate this realism to a great extent. It is not flashy, or thrilling, but in this way, it avoids over-dramatization that often cheapens the message of similar movies. In addition to the relative accuracy of events, this film also makes an attempt to depict the complexity of the conflict. Throughout the movie, Wilson includes scenes that seem to humanize the Serbian soldiers, and show that these men were not just monsters, but men, friends of brothers, husbands, and fathers. This did not make me any more sympathetic toward their characters, but this effort hints to the multi-faceted nature of this conflict, and attempts to mitigate the antagonism placed on the Serbian army. During the conflict, Bosniak Muslims, Croats, and Serbians were all victims and aggressors, but the Bosnian War is often presented only as a story of Serbian aggressors committing terrifying atrocities against Bosnian Muslims. This perspective is a very significant piece of the history to recognize, but it is important to realize that it is far from black-and-white. Overall, this movie does a tremendous job with communicating this part of history in a powerfully realistic way, and I encourage anyone who is interested in watching it to do so.

hrudolph-85358 This film, although extremely emotionally tolling and difficult to watch, is an important film depicting a women's internment camp during the Bosnian war. The main character, Samira, provides an accurate insight into the struggles facing women in these camps. These insights reach beyond our knowledge of the already terrible rapes and assaults that were so prominent, and give a look at the internal struggles facing these women and the effects of this treatment. The beginning of the film depicts the men being separated from the women, brought outside, and all shot to death. This is such a small, short scene in the film which demonstrated the normalcy of these murderous acts. It was't something the movie had to focus in on, it was clear what was happening and no questions had to be asked. The film then moves on to the main focus: Samira's experience in this dehumanizing camp. The film contains little dialogue, however dialogue is unneeded. Samira's facial expressions, body language and actions are enough to depict the pain and suffering she experiences throughout her time in the camp. In fact, the lack of dialogue is a smart choice on the part of Juanita Wilson because it allows the viewers to feel what Samira must have felt and allows them to throw themselves into her character more than if Samira had just described her feelings in words. It also demonstrates how women in these camps really were forced into silence following the things they had to endure. After the first rape, Samira could barely speak. She struggled to recover from this haunting experience and hid away in silence for a while until she realized that she was a human, not an animal as they saw her, and swore to grasp back onto her "womanhood" by putting on makeup and trying to look nice, something the other women disapproved of. This film also depicts the blurred line of morality in these camps. When Samira starts sleeping with the captain, there is a debate among the other women that she overhears. One says they would do the same thing while the other says it's a disgrace. Samira is doing what she thinks she has to do to survive, no matter how wrong it may be. The dynamic between Samira and the captain is obviously one where the captain has the upper hand. This is clearly still a case of rape because consent cannot exist in a camp such as this. Samira is aware of her lack of power in this situation and the captain is aware that Samira will do anything he tells her to do. The captain is portrayed in a way that could be seen as not completely evil, however the fact that he takes advantage of his power in this way makes him just as bad as any other rapist in that camp. The ending to the movie is another smart choice by Juanita Wilson because it shows that the suffering goes beyond liberation from the camp. Samira will forever see the pain she went through when she looks at her child, and will forever be reminded of who the father was. There is no end to suffering no matter how physically free these survivors are.

shannonclare This film was extremely difficult to watch, but to be any less than horrific would be an injustice to the victims and survivors of concentration camps during the Bosnian War. As If I Am Not There succeeds in depicting a representative camp experience for a young woman during the time of the war. The film explores the intricate complexities of relationships between abusers and victims, as well as between internees themselves. Samira, the main character, after being repeatedly raped by soldiers, is forced into a subordinate relationship with the captain of the camp in order to reap certain benefits to stay alive. Although Samira's choices are morally questionable, the film does well to address the fact that victims were willing to do nearly anything in order to survive. The film depicts the captain as a "non-monster," but his seemingly gentle nature is abusive nonetheless and he is no less of a rapist than the soldiers that brutally gang raped Samira throughout her time in the camp. For a brief moment towards the end of the film, the audience feels triumphant as the women escape the camp and appear atop a mountain. Although a fleeting moment before the audience is brought back to reality, it is extremely important in the depiction of female survivors of the war. After having spoken with survivors, they all emphasized a desire to be depicted as strong female survivors. Then, the audience is taken back to the reality that victims faced after their internment. The war did not end in 1995 for any survivors, but actually follows them everyday of their lives. In the film, the ongoing traumas of war are represented physically by Samira's baby, the product of rape, that will be a lifelong reminder of the torture she suffered. The audience is brought into Samira's mindset as she contemplates killing, leaving, or keeping the baby. The last scene shows Samira making the decision to keep the child as she breastfeeds it, and finally allows herself to cry and feel the emotions that she was forced to suppress during her time in the camp. The scene is made so powerful by Samira's lack of emotion throughout the rest of the film. She is continually dehumanized by her rapists, literally feeling as if she's nothing in the scene where she is looking on her own experience of rape and abuse from above. The poignant absence of dialogue throughout the film, except for a few conversations, strips Samira of her individuality and ability to be herself. She partially reclaims this through her relationship with the captain, but once again, this is a forced and false sense of self. Samira is truly able to be her own person at the end of the film, but she is forever changed by her experiences as a survivor of the camp.

bnair-14502 To start off, this film was one of the most gruesome and intense films I ever laid eyes on. Through illustrating scenes of women being raped, women being abused and women treated inhumanely, the director definitely wants her audience to sympathize and empathize with the women that were affected physically and mentally. Even though some of the women survived the camp, there experiences at the camp is something that will never go away and thus there lives will never be the same as well. The way women were traumatized is unheard of through history to be honest. Additionally, this film was extremely accurate in terms of how women were treated and how they proceeded once they were released from being held captive at the camp. Also, the director wants her audience to realize that monsters come in all forms, which is illustrated through the juxtaposition between the way the soldiers treated her vs the way the captain treated. Even though it seemed like the captain treated her better, towards the end of the film the captain chokes her, which illustrates that he is just like the other soldiers that raped her. This movie did a great job of illustrating the ethnic internment of Bosniaks during the Bosnian War.