Bad Blue Boys takes a voyeuristic view into the struggles of a 35-year-old Croatian war veteran, who, like many of his fellow ex-servicemen, finds himself lost in a modern, democratic state desperately scrambling for EU integration.
The ex-soldier is unemployed and suffering from chronic depression, severe mood swings and insomnia. He struggles to live in this country which doesn't seem concerned with helping him overcome his problems despite declaring his like as national heroes.
Branko Schmidt's 2007 documentary is a masterpiece of the 21st century resurrection of Croatian film making in it's portrayal of a veteran's seemingly worthless life, and it's condemnation of the Croatian government's treatment of the men who sacrificed themselves to defend their homeland.
The title of the film is taken from the notorious hooligans connected with Dinamo Zagreb, Croatia's most successful football team, and this theme is carried on with the opening scenes, which are taken from a highly volatile match between Dinamo and Red Star Belgrade which took place shortly before Serb forces began invading Croatia.
It is no co-incidence that Schmidt decided to include the spectre of hooliganism into this film, as he is makes a clear declaration that the Croatian Homeland War was an unnecessary war built on little but ethnic, tribal hatred, rather like the football riot we see in the opening of the film.
Considering the subject matter, there is little need for words in this film and Schmidt duly obliges by offering scant narration or commentary. But because of this, we learn more about the veteran's problems.
Whilst the veteran is in almost every scene, the viewer does not see his face throughout the film, with the point being these men are faceless, lost souls who simply do not count any more.
We see him having a Croatian coat of arms tattooed onto his arm and drinking with fellow veterans. We also see him going through his war photographs, his old uniforms and gun collection. He is nostalgic about the part of his life that has emotionally and socially crippled him. The tight shots of the veteran's hands as he reloads his gun and sharpens his knife make the viewer feel even less comfortable with what they are seeing.
Whilst the above are certainly strange behaviour patterns, his struggle to adapt back to everyday life is without doubt even more shocking. Walking his dog, cooking for his young family, going out on his motorcycle; these scenes are even harder to watch. This film underlines the horror of war in a way I have seldom seen, how it consumes a person's soul so they just cannot function correctly. The fact that the veteran's government doesn't care makes this film even more heartbreaking.
