Films A-Z
The Border
Hranica
Jaroslav Vojtek / Slovakia / 2009 / 72 min.
The inhabitants of the Slovak village of Slemence could not believe their eyes when they woke up on 30 August 1946. During the night, the Red Army had divided their home to create a new state border. This completely senseless frontier separated families, friends and neighbours forever. Not even the dead in the local cemetery were spared. In his latest film, Slovak director Jaro Vojtek (whose other work includes the documentary Here We Are, which won the Best Film Award at One World 2006) considers the absurdity of a border that not only divided Slovakia and Ukraine, but human lives as well. The border is all the more absurd because it was originally drawn between "friendly" socialist countries. Moreover, at a time when Europe is getting rid of frontiers between states, this border is paradoxically being fortified. Since Slovakia joined the EU, it has become one of the Schengen Zone's easternmost boundaries.
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