No Man's Land

Using humor to show exactly how hellish war is can be a pretty dicey proposition. When that move works, as it did in both the film and the television versions of "M*A*S*H," the resulting work can be more powerful than some "serious" films broaching the same material.

But when it doesn't — "Hogan's Heroes," anyone? — the piece winds up looking clownish and grotesque.

So the Slovenian-European co-production "No Man's Land" already has a lot going against it. For one thing, the bitterly humorous war treatise is reaching U.S. theaters at a time when audiences seem better-suited for rah-rah patriotism (as evidenced by the success of "Black Hawk Down" and "We Were Soldiers"). Which is unfortunate, since this one is far better and considerably more effective. And despite the liberal sprinkling of humor, "No Man's Land" ends with a very powerful and sure-to-haunt-you statement.

The story takes place in 1993, at the height of hostilities between Bosnian and Serbian forces. On opposite sides of the fighting are a Bosnian soldier, Ciki (Alec Baldwin lookalike Branko Djuric), and Nino (Rene Bitorajac), a Serbian.

But both men wind up in a booby-trapped trench between the two armies when Ciki gets lost with the other members of a Bosnian "relief patrol," and it is promptly cut down by Serbian snipers.

After the smoke clears, Nino and another soldier are sent into the trench to check for Serbian survivors. Ciki gets the drop on him, though, and quickly dispatches Nino's partner.

However, the two enemies have to work together when they discover another of the Bosnians, Cera (Filip Sovagovic), is still alive. While he was unconscious, Cera was placed atop a mine, and they're unable to move him without killing him and placing themselves in grave danger.

Bosnian filmmaker Danis Tanovic (1996's "L'Aube") effectively uses quirky gags — such as the verbal sniping between the two leads — to keep the audience off balance, which allows for some of the more shocking action toward the end of the film. (The final 30 minutes are particularly tense.)

The performances by Djuric and Bitorajac are also very strong, and English actors Katrin Cartlidge and Simon Callow show up in the roles of a pesky TV newsperson and a media-savvy U.N. officer, respectively.

"No Man's Land" is rated R for graphic war violence (gunplay, a stabbing and explosive mayhem), frequent use of strong, sexually related profanity, graphic gore, use of crude sexual slang terms and vulgar gestures and a quick glimpse at a nude photo. Running time: 97 minutes.

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