Split, Croatia. Tereza has had enough—after her fourth miscarriage, she feels her marriage with sailor Marko isn't going anywhere, and almost as an insult, her sister already has three kids. When her gynecologist tells her to "try it out with a new man, maybe it works", Tereza has sex with a man she met on the street, Serb Nikola. During a high school reunion, Tereza has sex with a waiter, Ante. Later, she meets a random man at a night club, but he gets jealous of her seeing other men and rapes her in his car. Finally, Tereza discovers that she is pregnant. Marko is notified, while Tereza's friend leaves for Berlin to live with her husband. While walking back from the airport, Tereza notices a red patch of blood on her dress, meaning another miscarriage.
Even though it won the Big Golden Arena for Best Film, psychological drama "Tereza37" didn't age well and feels just like another of the same old static art-films where the protagonist aimlessly wonders around the city, contemplating about his/her life, all until the random end where nothing is resolved and everything is just left vague without a conclusive satisfaction. This passivity in directing and writing hinders "Tereza37", especially in banal dialogue, though it is saved almost exclusively thanks to the strong performance by the excellent leading actress (and screenwriter) Lana Baric as Tereza, whose charisma manages to conjure up some higher leyers of meaning in the (thin and empty) storyline. A big surprise for the conservative Croatian cinema are several sex scenes since Tereza wants to get pregnant already, and thus goes from man to man until she "completes the task". It is questionable how much of this is realistic and accurate, though (would a waiter just randomly have sex without a condom with a woman he just met (?), and knows not if she has STDs, and do it out in the open on the street at night?), yet the filmmakers have audacity, and the cinematography manages to capture some aesthetic images of Split (Tereza watching a residential building through the window, while the sea is in the background). Only marginally successful contemplation on feminism and patriarchy in modern society, without much inspiration or ingenuity.
Grade:++
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