SFRJ, 1966, 70 min 
Direction: Živojin Pavlović
Cast: Dušan Cvetković, Nikola Čobanović, Predrag Milinković, Snežana Lukić, Velimir Živojinović
Selection: Retrospective of a Domestic Author
After participating in two omnibuses and all-night debut Neprijatelj (The Enemy), Živojin Pavlović, later to become a cult Yugoslav and Serbian director, made his first indication of a serious creative opus.
Povratak (The Return), a black and white movie from 1966, follows the attempts of an ex criminal and convict after returning from the institution to rehab and rediscover himself in his old surroundings, which got a completely new appearance, rules, and customs.
Soon, he is involved in a serous fight with former friends who do not have understanding for his attempts for a fresh start, but they want and try to pull him back to new “old” actions, that is, criminal acts. On the other hand, there is his old girlfriend in the story. He wants to start a new life with her, a life where he would be honest, hard-working, and responsible. However, people around him do not allow old sins to be neglected, so due to a series of misfortunate circumstances, misunderstandings, or simply, bad fortune, a tragedy comes at the end.
The screenplay of this social drama and interesting story, somewhat untypical for the period of the after-war reconstruction and reaching of determined high ideals, was written by Branimir Tori Janković. The music was composed by Dušan Radić, the set designer was Dragoljub Ivkov, and the cameraman was Aleksandar Petković. Povratak (The Return) was made in Avala Film production, but in the same year, it was banned for public projections under a decision of the censor commission of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia.
