Alive

A young man is caught up in a bitter rivalry that's decades old in this drama from Albanian filmmaker Artan Minarolli. Koli (Nik Xhelilaj) was born and raised in a small village in the Albanian mountains; now in his early twenties, Koli lives in the city and is completing his college degree. When Koli's father dies, the young man returns home for the first time in years to attend the funeral, but when he's nearly struck down by gunfire, Koli learns the man who shot at him is also the one who killed his dad. More than sixty years ago, Koli's grandfather entered into a feud with a rival family in the village, and all these years later the descendents of both clans are still looking for revenge. Koli hides out for a while in the home of his uncle (Xhevdet Ferri) and cousin (Besart Kallaku), but he's not certain how long he should fight against people he doesn't know over an insult he doesn't really understand. ALIVE! was an official selection at the 2009 Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.