An Episode in the Life of an Iron Picker

Bosnian writer-director Danis Tanovic’s 2001 war story ‘No Man’s Land’ was a keystone in the much-touted Eastern European new wave, but as that movement has faded from prominence, so has Tanovic. His latest, ‘An Episode in the Life of an Iron Picker’, is a simple affair, just 74 minutes long and filmed in documentary style with a single digital camera. As the title suggests, it follows Roma scrap collector Nazif (Nazif Mujic) as he struggles through his days, chopping up both cars (to sell) and wood (to burn), at the same time trying to cope with his wife’s (Senada Alimanovic) worsening illness. It’s all very intimate and convincing – Nazif’s twin daughters are played by lead actor Mujic’s own kids, and the performances are naturalistic throughout. But there’s nothing here we haven’t seen before: the desperately-scrounging-cash-for-an-operation plotline is tired and soapy, and there’s not a hint of moral ambiguity in the film.