Tears for Sale (2008)

Tears for Sale, also known internationally as Charleston & Vendetta or also as Funeral Brides (original title in Serbian: Чарлстон за Огњенку, Čarlston za Ognjenku, literal translation Charleston for Ognjenka, French: Charleston et Vendetta), is a Serbian drama film.

Directed by Uroš Stojanović, it stars Sonja Kolačarić, Katarina Radivojević, Nenad Jezdić, Stefan Kapičić, and Olivera Katarina.

It was released in Serbia following a January 30, 2008 premiere at Belgrade's Sava Centar. Made on a budget that exceeds €4 million, the movie was shot during summer 2005 as the most expensive Serbian movie ever (until St. George Shoots the Dragon surpassed it a year later). It then went into a long post-production due to specific CGI requirements.

Featuring 40 minutes worth of special effects and over 100,000 metres (330,000 ft) of film, around five times more than the average used in Serbia, from the technical point of view the film turned out to be one of the most ambitious undertakings in the history of Serbian cinematography. The musical score was done by Japanese composer Shigeru Umebayashi. Luc Besson's production and distribution companies Blue Pen and EuropaCorp hold the film's foreign market distribution rights.

In September 2008, the film was shown at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival, where it had three screenings as part of the festival's Vanguard programme. It was shown at the Santa Barbara 2009 International Film Festival (22 January – 1 February). In August 2009, it premiered in France.

Synopsis

The movie's plot is set during the 1920s in post-World War I Serbia. Rebuilding after a gruelling armed conflict in which it lost a sizable part of its young male population, the nation is struggling to recover demographically. The situation is especially visible in certain rural parts where this shortage of men threatens to extinguish life completely.

Actors