Istina = Truth
When a journalist in Serbia finds herself on the receiving end of several threats from aggressive rioters, she and her daughter move to Germany. Again she finds herself in a bad place, with both the lives of her and her daughter being threatened. With her world hanging in the balance, Jelena (Nika Rozman) must make a decision: keep chasing the truth or protect the thing she loves more than anything else in this world.
The thing I love most about Istina is the fact that it doesn’t point fingers. The title of the film says it all: it’s focused on representing the truth. The reality is that false information surfs the internet, the papers, and just about every other outlet around the world–and it’s important that we do our best to understand and express the truth in all that we say and do. I’ve found, time and time again, that films of this nature point the finger at a political group, a religious group, or a specific person–and that has become exhausting. Even though there may be visuals strewn throughout the film that may express the beliefs of Writer David M. Lorenz and Director Tamara Denic, I never felt pressured to think one thing.
Beyond the message that the writer and director are trying to convey, the story is wonderful. Istina extends itself beyond this idea of truth and includes a beautiful story about mother and daughter. The film is full of emotion often brought to life by Rozman and her time with her onscreen daughter Milica Vuksanovic (Lara). While the story is beautiful, and the love between the two characters is apparent and well developed, this really is a cautionary tale about putting your priorities in order. Lorenz and Denic beg viewers to consider their priorities, begging them to reconsider what’s most important to them.
There are many scenes throughout the course of Istina that I would consider to be chaotic, but intentionally so. Director of Photography André Stahlmann does a wonderful job of capturing these moments, navigating through the debris and the chaos, and finding ways to bring the film to life in the most effective ways.
There is so much good present in this film. From the meta understanding that Istina does a wonderful job of remaining relatively neutral, to the cinematography, to the stellar acting–there is so much that propels this film toward success. Istina is interesting and entertaining, but more importantly, it’s of massive importance in a world full of false truths.
Directed by Tamara Denic.
Written by David M. Lorenz.
Starring Nika Rozman, Milica Vuksanovic, Elizabeta Djorevska, Zeljko Marovic, Matthias Ludwig, etc.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/10
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