Leptirica Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Leptirica Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 27, 2022

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as a part of All the Haunts Be Ours: A Compendium of Folk Horror.

All the Haunts Be Ours advertises itself as "the most comprehensive collection of its kind", which may initially beg the question as to "kind of what?". But the release also comes with a front cover sobriquet proclaiming it "a compendium of folk horror", which may then beg the next obvious question as to what exactly "folk horror" is. In that regard, this set begins with a fascinating and diverse documentary which has its own subtitle referencing folk horror, Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror, which provides a veritable glut of clips from international films which director (and this entire set's guiding light) Kier-La Janisse has assembled to help define the genre, but perhaps the best answer is to simply echo a certain Supreme Court Justice named Potter Stewart who was trying to decide a case involving supposed pornography, and who famously opined, "I shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material I understand to be embraced within that shorthand description, and perhaps I could never succeed in intelligibly doing so. But I know it when I see it. . ."

In some ways, Leptirica may remind viewers, at least in passing, of another film included in All the Haunts Be Ours, the interest Russian feature Viy. Though Leptirica is a Serbian production, this may make sense in terms of regional myths and legends which often echo some elements of each other. While the focal male in this feature is not a seminary student, he is enthralled with a young woman who may have a quasi-vampiric secret or two hiding beneath her flowing white robes. Leptirica was evidently produced for television, and it has a lo-fi quality in terms of production opulence that is nonetheless not all that hobbling since the film creates such a spooky ambience virtually from the get go, one which echoes Viy's memorable portrayal of superstitious village life.

Much like Viy, however, this young man, named Strahinja (Petar Božović), is tasked with surviving a stay in an apparently haunted mill that is quite reminiscent of the facility where Viy largely takes place. Strahinja has a thing for beautiful Radojka (Mirjana Nikolić), but in time honored (Grimm's?) fairy tale tradition, their love is forbidden, and in his attempts to woo her, Strahinja comes in contact with various villagers (including something like the seminary student in Viy), as well as perhaps a monster or two. The film seems to suggest that ardent lovers, at least amorous males, should be careful of what they ask for.

Leptirica Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Leptirica is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.30:1. Severin's insert booklet states that this was culled from an "HD master from Public Service Media Radio Television of Serbia". This can't quite muster the same quality as some of the other offerings in this set, but considering the source it offers generally secure saturation after the optically printed credits sequence (and a similar optical toward the end). The bulk of the central part of the film features a nicely vibrant palette (pops of color like the vivid red flowers Radojka carries at one point contrast nicely with a sometimes neutral production design approach in terms of some of the costumes), though detail levels definitely fluctuate. There is an extended sequence toward the end that supposedly takes place at night, and there's not a wealth of detail.

Leptirica Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Leptricia features a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono track in the original Serbian. This has a noticeably bright, thin and occasionally slightly distorted high end, and some of the effects, like the omnipresent bird calls and water sounds, struck me as a bit "wet" (no pun intended). The soundtrack is very interesting in any case, with weird chanting and hallucinatory ambient environmental effects, all of which are rendered with good fidelity. While the track is fairly "busy" a lot of the time, when it quiets down, both hiss and an actual buzzing sound can be discerned. Optional English subtitles are available.

Leptirica Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Radical Fairy Tales (HD; 31:21) is an interview with director Đorđe Kadijević. Subtitled in English, and my sense is some things, perhaps idioms, may have gotten slightly lost in translation.


• Short Films

  Štićenik (HD; 44:35)

  
  

  Diary of an Inmate (HD; 10:10) is an interview with Štićenik actor Milan Mihailovic. Subtitled in English.

  
  

  Devičanska Svirka (HD; 59:27)

  
  

  Prisoner of Song (HD; 13:29) is an interview with Devičanska Svirka actor Goran Sultanovic. Subtitled in English.

Leptirica Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Leptirica may not have the epic budget or star quality that some others in the All the Haunts Be Ours set offer, but it has a uniquely spooky ambience. Technical merits are generally solid and the supplements very appealing. Recommended.