Search - Shot Through the Heart on DVD

This film conveys what it was really like....

M. Gora | Australia | 03/24/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"After spending three months doing humanitarian work in the former Yugoslavia in 1993, I didn't think a film in English, made by an "outsider", would ever convey what it was really like over there. I was wrong. Shot Through The Heart is remarkable in the way it shows the psychological effects of the war. Watching it, I felt transported back there. I recommend this film to anyone who wants to truly understand how the wars in Croatia, Bosnia-Hercegovina, and Kosovo happened. But I also recommend it to anyone who appreciates good film-making or wants a film that is an experience, not just a diversion."

Best Movie Around to Understand Kosovo & Yugoslavia War

Hayden M. Fink | Virginia, USA | 04/09/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This movie grabs you and throws you to the ground. The true story of two members of Yugoslavia's Olympic riflery team, both accomplished marksmen, who are the best of friends until the war in Bosnia turns them into enemy snipers. Despite their lifelong friendship the two young men are still Serbian Orthodox and Bosnian Muslim, and the war in Sarajevo forces them to take opposite sides ... to the final showdown when one must fall.We loved this movie. The actors and their performances are superb, the gripping drama of betrayal and survival takes the viewer for a ride full of unexpected twists and turns from compassion to cruelty amongst friends, family and community in Sarajevo during the Bosnian conflict.The invasion and ethnic cleansing of Kosovo is pre-shadowed in this story of Serbs and Muslims living together in peace then crushed with violence into war. This movie puts a human face and voice to the inner ethnic conflicts in the Balkans. The real tragedy of Yugoslavia today finds expression in Shot Through the Heart.Definitely one of the Best Foreign movies to make a statement about the human condition at war in Europe at the close of the 20th century. That this is a true story makes it all the more significant and relevant to the conflict in Kosovo, ethnic cleansing/genocide, and war between NATO and Yugoslavia. This is deeply moving emotional movie that engages you to step in the circle of hate and war between neighbors."

And your to blame

P.K. Ryan | Albany, NY USA | 07/22/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This was really quite a well-made and compelling film. Set in 1992 Sarajevo, the film begins right before the region descended into war and ethnic cleansing. It follows two best friends, one Orthodox Serb, one Bosnian Muslim, who are both snipers for the Yugoslavian Olympic team. But with the break-up of the Yugoslav nation, there will be no Olympics for these brothers-in-arms, instead they will be pitted against each other in an ethnic war. This struck me as a very realistic and gripping portrait of this turbulent situation, and it was quite heart-wrenching to watch. The struggle between loyalty to your friend, and loyalty to your nation/ethnicity/religion is a universal theme that I think everyone should be able to relate to. The film was also very well-made, not at all "low-budget" feeling as I was expecting. Four stars.

PS- I found it quite interesting that the Muslims portrayed are indistinguishable from the Serbs. They look and act just like ordinary white Slavs. This is quite the contrast to the bearded and veiled fundamentalists that we are used to seeing."

Excellent and highly recommendable!!!

stephany@total.net | Canada | 02/09/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Shot Through The Heart shows the public what we rarely saw on the nightly news, the human side of Sarajevo and the atrocities that occured. The people of Sarajevo appear to be no different than our neighbors, friends or relatives. You form an attachment to the characters, therefore, you care what happens to the them. They are not just nameless faceless victims as portrayed on our TV screens every evening. The movie begins before the war breaks out and takes us through the horrors of a mainly one-sided battle. The main characters, portrayed by Linus Roache and Vincent Perez,are childhood friends who are forced to fight against each other. One is a Muslim and the other a Serb. They are forced into a war they don`t believe in or even understand.In comparison, the movie is similar to Schlinder`s List but not with the high Hollywood budget and not as detailed. Nevertheless, the Sarajevo conflict between the Serbs and Muslims can only be compared to the Holocaust. It is ethnic extermination at its worst. But, Shot Through The Heart takes the public where it has never ventured before."