I eagerly anticipated this movie for a long time. Beogradski Fantom, or the Belgrade Phantom was a legend from the late 70s. A young rebel and a wacko Vlada Vasiljevic, also known as Vlada Opel or Vasa Kljuc was thundering throughout Belgrade's streets for 10 or so days during 1979 in a stolen white Porsche. This is one of Belgrade's famous urban legends and something my parents and older friends told me so much about. That's why I was so impatient to see this movie, and maybe the reason why my disappointment was so huge.
The major problem isn't only a low budget or bad acting, which were imminent, but lack of information. It's obvious that the crew had best intentions and all the energy, it's just that they couldn't fill up a bit more than an hour with material. The story is cut through and through with interviews of people involved in the Phantom matter (the cops who chased him, his friends, his fans...) and for more than a half of the movie same few facts go on and on in circles. Not to mention illiterate taxi drivers and cops who repeat one sentence the entire time... it's so annoying. Apart from boring monologues, there is a certain amount of action scenes. Nice, but nothing more. This is where the low budget becomes visible.
Finally, the acting was a kiss of death. A very poor play by actors, often unconvincing and dull. Like a bad commercial. The Phantom himself remains silent during the whole time, not one single word, with a grumpy face weather he's chasing with the police or laying in his bed. Booooring!
The best part of the movie by far are the sequences of Belgrade from the 70s which roll in the opening titles. Probably made by the secret service or something, they depict many details of the era.
10 for effort and idea, 2-3 for the final product. Overall 5.
