DC Area Premiere

Slobodan Milosevic’s most masterful political move as his own counsel was having a heart attack and dying—depriving his victims of seeing him face the verdict for his crimes. With exclusive behind-the-scenes access to the courtroom and to principal attorneys and advisors, Michael Christoffersen documented the serpentine trial in its entirety, culminating in more than 2,000 hours of courtroom footage and 250 hours of interviews.

Milosevic, nicknamed the “butcher of the Balkans,” was the first incumbent head of state in history put on trial by an international court—and he chose to defend himself. He was charged with crimes against humanity and enacting genocide during the wars of the 1990s in the former Yugoslavia, which resulted in the deaths of 125,000 people and the displacement of 3 million others. Milosevic considered the accusations a travesty and refused a court-appointed attorney on the grounds that the trial was illegal. Thus, he conducted his own brazen defense before the court, applying misleading questions, irreverent denials, and myriad stall tactics. Then, on March 11, 2006, just months before a verdict was expected, he died of a heart attack.

MILOSEVIC ON TRIAL captures the trial's many twists and turns, and the result is nothing short of fascinating. Christoffersen masterfully distills the material into a sober portrayal of Milosevic and reveals the extraordinary inner workings of the international court system. The film not only gives a bird’s eye view of a historic event, but it describes the extraordinarily complex issues involved in a trial of this stature and significance. These courtroom antics of a charismatic madman are a Shakespearian drama on the international stage.

—Sky Sitney

 

Post-screening discussion on Tuesday, June 17

Moderated by Tom Gjelten, NPR correspondent

Panelists:
Michael Christoffersen, Director of MILOSEVIC ON TRIAL
General Wesley Clark (Ret.), Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe
Edward Joseph, Visiting Fellow at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. Served in the Balkans from 1992 to 2003.