Film in focus: Seventh chronicle

A correct and atractive film

A review of the film The Seventh Chronicle by Bruno Gamulin.

Contrasting the film with the overrated Brešan’s How the War Started on My Island and underrated Sedlar’s Vergissmeinnicht — Do Not Forget Me the reviewer considers the film to be the best in 96’ production. Continuing the tradition of European »ethnographic film« (with Babaja and Mimica as some predecessors in Croatian film) The Seventh Chronicle presents a contagious ethnographic and »ecographic« image of Mediterranean world mediated by the skilful cinematography by Enes Midžić. The main fault of the film is its overcalculated, almost snobbish nature, with some underdeveloped narrative lines, with mostly pale characters (except for some good negative roles performed by S. Medvešek and I. Gregurović). Besides this weaknesses, the reviewer evaluates the film as a valid and attractive attempt at awakening of one important line of Croatian poetic tradition in feature film, much more successful then the filmmaker’s previous attempt with Memorable Summer.

Damir Radić