When Father Was Away on Business

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7.3

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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Mustafa Nadarević
Zijah 'Zijo' Zulfikarpašić
Davor Dujmović
Mirza Malkoč, brat
Predrag 'Miki' Manojlović
Mehmed 'Meša' Zolj, otac
Mira Furlan
Ankica Vidmar
Jasmin Geljo
Pavle Vuisić
Muzafer Zulfikarpašić, dedo
Saša Petrović
Kum (uncredited)
Emir Hadžihafizbegović
Fahro Zulfikarpašić

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