| Бој на Косову Boj na Kosovu Battle of Kosovo | |
| Director: | Zdravko Šotra |
| Starring: | Miloš Žutić, Gorica Popović, Vojislav Brajović, Žarko Laušević, Ljuba Tadić |
| Distributor: | Centar film |
| Runtime: | 117 minutes |
| Country: | Yugoslavia |
| Language: | Serbian |
Battle of Kosovo (Бој на Косову|Boj na Kosovu) is a 1989 Yugoslav historical drama/war film filmed in Serbia. The film was based on the drama written by poet Ljubomir Simović.[1] It depicts the historical Battle of Kosovo between Medieval Serbia and the Ottoman Empire which took place on 15 June 1389 (according to the Julian calendar, 28 June 1389 by the Gregorian calendar) in a field about 5 kilometers northwest of Pristina.
The film was released in 1989, which marked the 600th anniversary of the Battle. However, according to Serbian historian Olivera Milosavljevic, the film "said more about the political context of the 1980s than about...1389". Other academics have backed this sentiment, criticizing the film's historical accuracy and pointing to the film's support of Serbian nationalism.[2]
Serbian Duke Lazar in 1389 refuses to obey the Turk Sultan Murat who intends on invading Serbia with an army in order to conquer Europe. Although aware that he is weaker, without enough men, Duke Lazar decides to fight him anyway. The Serbian Lords are not united. Most of them want to fight, even at the cost of defeat, but some of them do not. Everyone fit for battle is sent to Kosovo. The battle of Kosovo in 1389 ended with no winners - with both armies defeated and both Lazar and Murat dead. The Turks would proceed to invade Serbia but were hindered from taking over the rest of Europe.