''Josef'' is a 2011 Croatian

war drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by Stanislav Tomić depicting the war story of an

Austrian-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1 ...

Croat The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic, Ge ...

soldier during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

in 1915 in Galicia. In the film, stress is given to effective photos, music, violence and sex. Polimac, Nenad
Thompson je preko filma ipak ušao u Arenu: Ratni triler 'Jozef' pun je nasilja, seksa, efektne fotografije i glazbe
Jutarnji list, 2011-07-23. Retrieved 2011-09-17 Critics were very positive. Critics especially praised costumes and scenography, even though film was produced with low budget and in an independent production. The film won the Golden Arena for Best Special Effects at the 2011

Pula Film Festival Pula Film Festival ( hr, Pulski filmski festival) is an annual Croatian film festival, established in 1954. It is held in a Roman amphitheater known as the Pula Arena. Pula Film Festival is the oldest Croatian film festival and is usually held ...

.Šagovac, Mladen
Druga velika Zlatna arena za Tomislava Radića
Moj film, 2011-07-23. Retrieved 2011-09-17

Plot

In 1915, during

in Galicia, Croatian soldiers serving in the

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army (, literally "Ground Forces of the Austro-Hungarians"; , literally "Imperial and Royal Army") was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint arm ...

were sent on The Eastern Front to fight against the

Russian Army The Russian Ground Forces (russian: Сухопутные войска �ВSukhoputnyye voyska V}), also known as the Russian Army (, ), are the land forces of the Russian Armed Forces. The primary responsibilities of the Russian Ground Force ...

and Circassian bandits. A soldier who has survived the battle, an unnamed Croat, takes a uniform and identification tag from a dead NCO. Later, the Croat and a group of Croatian Home Guard and Hungarian Honvéd deserters are captured by a Gendarmerie unit led by Lieutenant Ali Tiffenbach. Before the Croat could be

executed by firing squad Execution by firing squad, in the past sometimes called fusillading (from the French ''fusil'', rifle), is a method of capital punishment, particularly common in the military and in times of war. Some reasons for its use are that firearms are us ...

with the rest of the deserters, he is mistaken for

Zugsführer (Zgf or ZF; ) is a rank of the enlisted men rank group (EN group) in the Austrian Bundesheer. In comparison to the German Bundeswehr it is equivalent to the EN-rank “Oberstabsgefreiter”. A Zugsführer might be tasked to lead a sub-subunit ...

Josef, the dead NCO whose identification tag he's carrying. The Austrian Colonel decides to spare the Croat because Josef is well known as a regimental

fencing Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, ...

champion, much to the disappointment of Lieutenant Tiffenbach, who suspects that the Croat is an

impostor An impostor (also spelled imposter) is a person who pretends to be somebody else, often through means of disguise. Their objective is usually to try to gain financial or social advantages through social engineering, but also often for purposes ...

. Tiffenbach later confirms his suspicions when he easily defeats "Josef" in a sword duel. Later, Tiffenbach's unit is attacked and obliterated by a group of Circassian

irregulars Irregular military is any non-standard military component that is distinct from a country's national armed forces. Being defined by exclusion, there is significant variance in what comes under the term. It can refer to the type of military orga ...

led by a Russian officer, Captain Seryoza. The Croat hides the severely wounded Tiffenbach in a shack and switches their uniforms, believing the bandits would spare him if he is dressed like an officer. However, the bandits kill the Croat the moment they see him. Tiffenbach, now wearing Josef's uniform and identification tag, is later found by a woman named Pelagija, who takes him to her cabin in the woods. Pelagija tends to Tiffebach's wounds for a few days, but later betrays him to the Circassians in exchange for a horse. Over the next few days, Tiffenbach and two other captured soldiers are physically tortured and forced to do heavy work in the Circassian camp. The Circassians later regroup with the regular Russian Army and Tiffenbach is thrown in a prison where he is left to starve. Soon, the Austro-Hungarian Army begins an offensive in the area, defeating the Russians and capturing their positions. Before the end of the battle, Captain Seryoza finds Tiffenbach and switches their uniforms, joining the Austrians. After the battle, the Austrians execute their prisoners, including Tiffenbach who is only half-conscious and unable to identify himself. Seryoza joins the Austrians as they return to their camp and takes a look at Josef's tag to see the name Josip Broz, implying that he would one day become Josip Broz Tito, the future leader of the

Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene: , or the National Liberation Army, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska (NOV), Народноослободилачка војска (НОВ); mk, Народноослобод� ...

and the

Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yug ...

Roles

Major roles

Supporting roles

References

External links

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Josef (2011)
at Moj film
Josef (2011) Tralier
at Moj film {{in lang, hr 2011 films 2011 war drama films 2010s Croatian-language films 2010s German-language films Ukrainian-language films 2010s Russian-language films World War I films set on the Eastern Front Films set in Ukraine Films set in 1915 Croatian war drama films Cultural depictions of Josip Broz Tito Films about Josip Broz Tito 2011 drama films 2011 multilingual films Croatian multilingual films