THE TRAP

FEATURE FILM

SRDAN GOLUBOVIĆ / 2007

SINOPSIS

Post-Milosević Belgrade, capital of a nation struggling to find its soul, of a country whose turbulent recent past has left many in a moral and existential desert. This is the home of Mladen, his wife Marija and their son Nemanja. When Nemanja develops a serious heart condition, the doctors urge an operation abroad. But where to obtain the 26,000 euros? Just when the boy´s parents give up hope of raising the money, a man contacts Mladen and offers to pay the whole amount. But there is one thing Mladen must do: kill the man´s business rival. The proposal repulses Mladen, but as his son´s condition suddenly deteriorates, he begins to seriously consider the offer. If he accepts, he saves his boy´s life but loses his soul; if he refuses, he will grieve as a righteous man until the end of his life. The trap is set...

‘The Trap’ is a film about an ordinary man who is forced to choose between the life and death of his own child. It is a story about the moral dilemma of the protagonist, who can only save the life of his son by accepting to become a killer. It is a story about a man who is trying to exchange death for life, to substitute his misfortune with someone else’s. It is about an event that can bring salvation to his family, and suffering to another family. It is about the freedom of choice, which actually doesn’t exist …
‘The Trap’ is a ‘personal story’ kind of film; in a way, a contemporary Balkan version of ‘Crime and Punishment’. It is about the crime that saves the life of the protagonist’s child, and the punishment that comes from within.