Red Dust () is a 1999 Croatian film directed by Zrinko Ogresta. It was Croatia's official Best Foreign Language Film submission at the 72nd Academy Awards, but did not manage to receive a nomination.
Selected for the 56th Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica di Venezia (official section), Venezia (Italy, September 1999)
Grand Prix "Golden Anchor" Haifa's 15th International Film Festival - Haifa (Israel, September 1999)
The film is set in a neighborhood in western Zagreb at the beginning of the 1990s, offering a dark and tragic portrayal of the community during this period of turbulent transition marked by the collapse of Yugoslavia and the rise of organized crime.
The plot centers on Crni, a 27-year-old local boxer. The central conflict begins when Crni, having fled the Yugoslav Army in 1990 after a telegram informing him of his mother's death was withheld, returns home. He disrupts the wedding of his former girlfriend, Lidija, who is marrying Boss, a local bully and coffee bar owner who controls the criminal rackets in the area.
Driven by desperation and the need to survive, Crni, aided by his car mechanic friend à  krga, gets involved in cigarette smuggling. This criminal venture unwittingly places him in direct competition with Boss's operation. Crni's boxing coach, Kirby, who is also a local policeman, tries to steer Crni away from crime by convincing him to return to boxing, attempting to protect him from both the military police and Boss.
The story takes a tragic turn when Lidija, unable to endure the abuse from Boss, leaves him. Later, a complicated and violent situation leads to her death in Crni's house. The entire narrative is seen through the eyes of Zrik, a 16-year-old apprentice of à  krga, who is the only witness to the murder. The film ultimately uses the personal tragedy of Crni and his community as a microcosm of the societal and economic breakdown occurring in Croatia just before the war.
Haifa International Film Festival