Winner of the Jury Prize for the Un Certain Regard section of the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, The High Sun follows three separate love stories set in three consecutive decades all affected by war and the prejudice following the independence of Croatia from the disbanded Yugoslavia nation.
It’s 1991 and Jelena and Ivan often meet by the beautiful, serene lake outside their respective villages for secret trysts. They come from opposing sides of the issue of Croatian independence and are often shamed for their relations. We later meet Natasa and Ante in 2001 (in the same locale as the previous vignette), returning to their homes where rubble and debris are reminders of the blood that was shed and carrying hard-to-forget prejudices that threaten to keep them apart. Finally, Marija and Luka in 2011 would choose to completely forget the war if it weren’t for the guilt from generations past weighing them down. Writer-director Dalibor Matanic makes the powerful choice to have all three couples played by the same actors, Tihana Lazovic and Goran Markovic respectively. He explores the notion that no matter the time, the experience and history of a society resonates far past generational lines. The first Croatian film to be screened at Cannes since the country’s independence, The High Sun proves that love is a powerful ally in the war.
DIRECTOR: Dalibor Matanic CAST: Tihana Lazovic, Goran Markovic, Nives Ivankovic, Dado Cosic, Stipe Radoja, Trpimir Jurkic, Mira Banjac LANGUAGE: Croatian COUNTRY: Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia YEAR: 2015 LENGTH: 123 min
