Larry Silverstein Joshua Marston, who brought to the screen the terrific film "Maria Full of Grace", directed and co-wrote this script along with Andamion Murataj. I found this movie to be a powerful human drama, set in the northern regions of Albania.Nik, admirably portrayed by first time actor Tristan Halilaj, stars as the oldest son of a close knit family of six. He is a typical teenager who goes to school, wisecracks with his friends, and pursues his interest in girls. His father, Mark, works a local bread route with an old horse and cart. However, one day an aggressive neighbor denies his father access to a shortcut across his land and threatens and intimidates him. The father returns with his brother Zef to "settle the score", and a fight breaks out whereby the neighbor is killed after he allegedly attacked the two brothers with a knife. Zef is caught and sentenced to 18 years in jail, but the father goes into hiding. This sets up a "blood feud" between the two families. I thought it was fascinating to see how these feuds are handled by the people in that region. There is a certain code of conduct that must be maintained as set forth in the Kanun. Elders meet to determine the best course of action for the family.Nik and his family are advised they need to stay in their home unless what they call a "besa" is issued, which is like a temporary pass to leave the house and not worry about any retaliations. Mediators will eventually try and work out a solution to the feud where both sides are satisfied.But as the weeks pass and no solution is found, the strain on the family becomes intense. His sister Rudina, also wonderfully played by Sindi Lacej, tries to keep the bread route going to help them survive. However, the threats and attacks on their family get more and more intense.It all spirals into a highly dramatic conclusion.Overall, I found the film to be somewhat slow moving but for those who enjoy a foreign film which is superbly acted, written, and directed with an interesting solid story it should be quite engrossing and enjoyable.

Howard Schumann Belgian playwright and poet Maurice Maeterlinck said, "At every crossroads on the path that leads to the future, tradition has placed 10,000 men to guard the past." As demonstrated in Joshua Marston's second feature, The Forgiveness of Blood, customs, traditions, dogmas, and deeply embedded ways of thinking that were once pertinent can become irrelevant and even damaging with the passing of time. An example is the Albanian Kanun law, an uncodified collection of customs and rules perpetuated by word of mouth since the fifteenth century. Incongruously existing side by side with high-definition TV, Facebook, cell phones, and texting, these traditions are anathema to the lives of many young Albanians.As the film opens, an ancient horse-drawn cart plods its way along a narrow road surrounded by a broad expanse of open fields. On land previously owned by his grandfather, the driver Mark (Reft Abazi) and his teenage son Nik (Tristan Halilaj), a senior in high school, use the road to earn their living selling bread. Resentful and jealous, Sokol (Vetan Osmani), the current owner of the land, creates obstacles to the father and son accompanied by growing threats. The deep-seated antagonism rooted in years of jealousy and animosity is revealed at the local pub when insults are exchanged that stop short of violence. When Sokol closes the road, however, to Mark's cart and threatens him with a knife in the presence of his adolescent daughter Rudina ((Sindi Lacej), Mark returns with his brother (Luan Jaha) and Sokol is stabbed to death in a murder that takes place off-camera.The brother is arrested and sent to jail for eighteen years, while Mark, accused of complicity in Sokol's murder, goes into hiding. One of the unwritten laws is the stricture that, in the case of blood feuds or other crimes between neighbors, an entire family must suffer the consequences of the crime even if only one member is guilty of the offense and that the family of the deceased can extract retribution by killing a male member of the guilty clan. The blood feud and the application of the Kanun law hits hardest on the two older children as well as young Dren. Rudina, who has dreams of going to university, is forced to leave school to take over father's business of delivering bread which she expands to include other items.Nik, however, whose ambition includes wanting to open an Internet café, is chained to the home possibly for a long period of time, afraid to venture out for fear of retribution. The Forgiveness of Blood is not only a story about a conflict between past and present, but an exploration of the inner lives of people in a culture that we in the West are hardly even aware of. As in Marston's 2004 acclaimed Maria Full of Grace, his latest film is filled with a powerful authenticity racked with unnerving tension that tells a potent story of unfulfilled hopes and dreams. Immersing himself in the culture, Marston interviewed families living in isolation as mandated by the Kanun law, and shows events as they unfold without judgment or evaluation. With local first-time actors, Lacej and Halilaj giving nuanced and convincing performances, the result is a film of great humanity.

Blackpool34 This film is again one of important subject matter that was handled in a very low-key way. It reminded me of the pace of "Of Gods and Men", it didn't hold your attention - not enough stuff happens in it - and this is a shame because it's a film about Albanian blood feuds, and the history behind them. It felt like a documentary and the acting was too subdued, although the actors were not experienced. Lots of yawning from a guy behind me suggested it wasn't capturing peoples imagination due to the snail's pace of each scene and conversation, hardly any incidental music - a very soporific 1 hour 50 mins.It's also garnered loads of awards?

kosmasp It is really very old school and very subtle. Still the sentiment is very strong and the acting is more than solid. Though some may call it slow and think it is nothing more than a documentary. Though that is not a bad thing in my book, you have to decide how you feel about it. It's family driven plot has values to offer.While some things may seem ridiculous to people who live in the city, this stuff indeed happens. So while I am not sure if it actually based on something in particular, it is more than obvious, that in general this has happens. A very dark drama, with great natural performances, that elevate the movie clearly :o)