''The Marathon Family'' ( sr, Маратонци трче почасни круг / Maratonci trče počasni krug, lit. ''Marathon Runners Do a Lap of Honour'', or often simply ''Maratonci'', lit. ''The Marathon Runners'') is a 1982
Yugoslav black comedy film written by
Dušan Kovačević
Dušan Kovačević ( sr-Cyrl, Душан Ковачевић, ; born 12 July 1948) is a Serbian playwright, scriptwriter, film director and academic best known for his theatre plays and movie scripts. He also served as the ambassador of Serbia in L ...
and directed by
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...
n director
Slobodan Šijan
Slobodan Šijan ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан Шијан, ; born November 16, 1946) is a Serbian film director.
Biography
Šijan was born in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. He graduated from the Fine Arts Academy in Belgrade, and then enrolled in Belgrade's ...
. It has become a
cult film in Serbia and other countries from the former
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
region and is regarded as one of the classics of Yugoslav Serbian cinematography.
Plot
The story takes place in an unnamed small Serbian town in 1935, and focuses on the Topalović family consisting of six generations of
undertaker
A funeral director, also known as an undertaker (British English) or mortician (American English), is a professional involved in the business of funeral rites. These tasks often entail the embalming and burial or cremation of the dead, as ...
s:
* gravely ill Pantelija,
* Maksimilijan who uses a wheelchair, is mute and nearly deaf,
* rheumatic Aksentije,
* sober-minded Milutin,
* impulsive and narcissistic Laki, and
* young and naive Mirko.
Constantly bickering amongst each other, the latest family arguments arise from the youngest son, Mirko, not wanting to continue the family business of coffin-making. Deeply in love with a local girl Kristina, the daughter of a local hoodlum Bili Piton, he's looking to avoid the career path of his father, grandfather, great grandfather, etc.
Though operating out of a prominently located shop in the town, Topalovićs' business is mostly based on illegal activities. Instead of making brand new coffins, they simply recycle already used ones with the help of Bili Piton, whose men dig them out from the local cemetery during the night. Once they get their hands on the coffins that had been dug up, Topalovićs simply refurbish them and sell them as new, thereby making a large profit with very little
overhead. Based on mutual financial interest, the business relationship between Topalovićs and Bili is deteriorating by the day as they owe him a large sum of money for the past services rendered and show no intention of paying him.
In parallel, Topalovićs are in the finishing stages of building a modern
crematory
A crematorium or crematory is a venue for the cremation of the dead. Modern crematoria contain at least one cremator (also known as a crematory, retort or cremation chamber), a purpose-built furnace. In some countries a crematorium can also b ...
on which they're placing high hopes as the future source of income.
One day, the oldest Topalović, Pantelija, dies and leaves family inheritance to himself because he does not trust his successors. Topalovićs leave business with Bili Piton and he threatens to report them to the police for killing a man in a car accident. Bili's daughter, Mirko's love Kristina wishes to become an actress in (mostly pornographic) movies made by Mirko's best friend Đenka. However, she cheats on Mirko with Đenka, so outraged Mirko kills her when he finds out. He returns to his family and makes himself their leader by force, while Đenka is accidentally burned alive by the deaf Maksimilijan, while repairing the crematorium. The movie ends with a showdown between the Topalovićs and Bili Piton, in which Bili Piton is killed, and then a chase between Topalovićs and the police, with a scene abruptly cut just as raging Mirko attempts to run over a police officer fallen from a bicycle.
Cast
*
Bogdan Diklić
Bogdan Diklić ( sr-Cyrl, Богдан Диклић; born 1 August 1953) is a Serbian actor. He has been active since the late 1970s and starred in over one hundred Yugoslav films and television series. Diklić made ten films with director Gora ...
as Mirko Topalović
*
Bata Stojković as Laki Topalović
*
Pavle Vujisić as Milutin Topalović
*
Mija Aleksić
Milosav "Mija" Aleksić ( sr-cyr, Милосав "Мија" Алексић; 26 September 1923 – 12 March 1995) was a Serbian actor.
Early life
Aleksić was born in the Gornja Crnuća village within the municipality of Gornji Milanovac, King ...
as Aksentije Topalović
*
Milivoje Tomić
Milivoje "Mića" Tomić (10 February 1920 – 23 August 2000) was a Serbian actor.
Tomić won numerous awards during his career, including the " Pavle Vuisic" Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997.
Selected filmography
References
External lin ...
as Maksimilijan Topalović
*
Radislav Lazarević as Pantelija Topalović
*
Zoran Radmilović
Zoran Radmilović ( sr-cyr, Зоран Радмиловић; 11 May 1933 – 21 July 1985) was a Serbian actor who had some of the most memorable roles in the history of former Yugoslav cinema.
He studied law, architecture and philology at the ...
as Billy the Python (Bili Piton)
*
Seka Sablić
Jelisaveta "Seka" Sablić ( sr-cyr, Јелисавета "Сека" Саблић; born 13 June 1942) is a Serbian actress. She had performed in theatre houses in Belgrade and on TV and film. She is the winner of major theatre awards in Serbia and ...
as Kristina
*
Bora Todorović
Borivoje "Bora" Todorović ( sr-Cyrl, Боривоје "Бора" Тодоровић; 5 November 1929 – 7 July 2014) was a Serbian actor. He was the younger brother of the actress, Mira Stupica, and father of Srđan Todorović.
Biography
He ...
as Đenka
*
Melita Bihali as Olja the maid
*
Fahro Konjhodžić as Mr Rajković
*
Veljko Mandić as Rajković's brother
*
Bata Paskaljević
Mihajlo "Bata" Paskaljević ( sr-cyr, Михајло "Бата" Паскаљевић; 14 January 1923 – 26 January 2004) was a Serbian stage, film, and television actor, permanent member of the Belgrade Drama Theatre since 1950.[ ...]
as Older gendarme
*
Dragoljub-Gula Milosavljević as Mourner (as Dragoljub Milosavljević)
*
Miroslav Jovanović as 1st Twin
*
Dragoslav Jovanović as 2nd Twin
*
Milovan Tasić as The Giant
*
Milan Janjić as Midget
*
Ras Rastoder as Younger gendarme
*
Stanojlo Milinković as Villager
*
Vojislav Micović as Old man at cemetery
*
Nebojša Terzić as Priest Đura
*
Nikola Brodac as Deceased
Awards
The Marathon Family won two awards in 1982, including the Jury Prize at the
Montréal World Film Festival
The Montreal World Film Festival (WFF; french: le Festival des Films du Monde) was one of Canada's oldest international film festivals and the only competitive film festival in North America accredited by the FIAPF (although the Toronto Internat ...
and the "Best Actress" award at the
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 ...
, which went to
Seka Sablić
Jelisaveta "Seka" Sablić ( sr-cyr, Јелисавета "Сека" Саблић; born 13 June 1942) is a Serbian actress. She had performed in theatre houses in Belgrade and on TV and film. She is the winner of major theatre awards in Serbia and ...
for her portrayal of Kristina.
imdb awards
/ref>
See also
*List of Yugoslavian films
This is a list of the most notable Yugoslav cinema films.
1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
See also
*List of Bosnia and Herzegovina films
*List of Croatian films
* List of Macedonian films
* List of Montenegrin films
* ...
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marathon Family
1982 films
1980s black comedy films
Serbian black comedy films
1980s Serbian-language films
Films about death
Yugoslav films based on plays
Films based on works by Dušan Kovačević
Films about feuds
Films set in Serbia
Films set in Yugoslavia
Films set in 1935
Films directed by Slobodan Šijan
Films with screenplays by Dušan Kovačević
Yugoslav black comedy films
1982 comedy films
Films about the Serbian Mafia