McGill East European and Russian Film/Documentary Series: "Balkan Cabaret" (1999, Serbia, film, 100 minutes)

This film's purpose is to illustrate what happens when a pocket of civilization collapses. It features a collage of stories that take place during the course of one night in Belgrade. Law and order have broken down. The streets are teeming with police, but they don't act, and when they do, they are ineffectual. In fact, the cops are as much a part of the problem as the solution. Their job is no longer about honouring a meaningless term like justice; their purpose is to mete out punishment. Violence is no longer a regrettable tool; it is a pleasure.