The Scene of the Crash
Jelena hears from a strange young man, Vlatko, that her husband has been in a car accident. Apparently, he is in hospital and seriously injured. According to Vlatko, however, Jelena's husband does not want to see her and prefers his lover’s visits. Jelena is shocked and seeks comfort from her ex-husband Nino and her father, a once influential politician who now lives in a nursing home. Conversations with the two men make Jelena even more desperate. At the same time, Vlatko tries to approach Jelena, and giving in to him pushes her into even greater despair.
“The Scene of the Crash” is a modernist psychological drama directed by Zvonimir Berković. His debut short film “My Flat” (1962) won the Special Jury Prize at Cannes. His first feature film "Rondo" (1966) is one of the best films of Croatian auteur cinema.
Kati Vuks
Zvonimir Berković (1928) died in 2009. He had studied film directing at the Zagreb Academy of Drama Arts, then at Jadran Film, and in 1957 he went into freelance work. His screenwriting career began in the mid-1950s, his most notable work being Nikola Tanhofer's 1958 film ""H-8"", for which he co-authored the screenplay with Tomislav Butorac. Berković made his debut as a film director with the short feature film ""My Apartment"" (1962), for which he was awarded a special jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival. During the 1950s and '60s, he wrote theatre and music reviews and polemics in numerous newspapers. The first full-length feature film ""Rondo"" (1966), awarded with Golden Arena for the screenplay at the Pula festival, is one of the most appreciated films of auteur cinematography in Croatia in the 1960s, while ""The Scene of the Crash"" (1971) is a modernist psychological drama.
Filmography:
valik/selected: Rondo (1966), Putovanje na mjesto nesreće (The Scene of the Crash, 1971), Ljubavna pisma s predumišljajem (Love Letters with Intent, 1985), Kontesa Dora (Countess Dora, 1993)