When Father Was Away on Business

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7.296

NR

Genre: Drama
Release year: 1985
Running time: 136 min
Country: Yugoslavia

Tito's break-up with Stalin in 1948 marked the beginning of not only confusing, but also very dangerous, years for many hard-core Yugoslav communists. A careless remark about the newspaper cartoon is enough for Mesha to join many arrested unfortunates. His family is now forced to cope with the situation and wait for his release from prison.

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Saša Petrović
Kum (uncredited)
Mira Furlan
Ankica Vidmar
Emir Hadžihafizbegović
Fahro Zulfikarpašić
Eva Ras
Ilonka Petrović
Predrag 'Miki' Manojlović
Mehmed 'Meša' Zolj, otac
Jasmin Geljo
Predrag Laković
Kućepazitelj Franjo
Mirjana Karanović
Senija 'Sena' Zolj, majka

Emir Kusturica
Director
Zoran Simjanović
Original Music Composer
Vilko Filač
Director of Photography
Andrija Zafranović
Editor
Abdulah Sidran
Writer
Mirza Pašić
Producer
Divna Jovanović
Costume Design
Predrag Lukovac
Production Design

deepkino 9/17/2025 10:40:10AM 8.4

Emir Kusturica's When Father Was Away on Business is a courageous, funny, and deeply moving film that blends comedy, family drama, and political realism. The title refers to the lie a family tells a six-year-old boy to explain his father's imprisonment in a labor camp for a thoughtless remark that offended Communist officials. It won the Palme d'Or at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Film.

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