Zero (2021)

Zero Review

Zero (Nula) is a 2021 Serbian live-action short film directed by Lee Filipovski. It’s a surprisingly good, relevant short.

For the couple driving along a Serbian mountainside, navigating the road’s sharpest curves may be less challenging than finding the means to genuinely communicate. The guy talks sparingly, the girl talks a lot. He doesn’t like to talk about his feelings, but she would stop at nothing to overanalyze everything. The movie truthfully and honestly depicts the vast differences between the two sexes and just how insurmountable those differences can feel at times.

It clearly takes the side of the female character, though it is obvious that both of them are very annoying. Neven Bujic gave a pretty solid performance and so did Hana Selimovic who was actually stupendous here. These two actors are so good that they easily eclipse most Serbian actors who appear in much bigger projects, which tells a lot. The movie doesn’t include a message here and it’s thematically lacking in a sense, but the argument that they have is great and the dialogue is grounded in reality. The car for this one-setting narrative was superbly used and the ending is fine, though not as conclusive as you’d wish.

Zero is this surprisingly good Serbian short movie that benefits from strong performances and a very believable depiction of the male-female dichotomy.

Watched in my hometown at Basta Fest 2022.

My Rating – 4