Three Weeks After Review: A Painfully Realistic Look at the Lasting Effects of Bullying — Fantastic Fest 2026

★★★★★

Three Weeks After is a dark, gritty, and unforgivingly realistic insight into the lasting effects of bullying and harassment, which are often overlooked until it’s too late.

Miroslav Terzić’s latest directing effort utilizes every aspect of filmmaking to craft a deeply emotional and compelling film. From the cinematography to the score and editing, to the careful attention to detail in bringing the script to life through pacing, tone, and bringing out the best performances in the actors.

“Three Weeks After is a dark, gritty, and unforgivingly realistic insight into the lasting effects of bullying and harassment.”

The film follows Tzotza while on a school trip, three weeks after his best friend’s suicide due to excessive bullying and torment.

The bullies now target him as their next victim.

While the film is inspired by actual events, the script and story itself are a fictionalized reimagining of a teenager who took his own life due to excessive bullying in Serbia.

Nevertheless, the film captures peer violence, silence, responsibility, and collective guilt with such detail, realism, and emotional turmoil that its reflection of life is uncanny.

The script, penned by Vladimir Arsenijević, Miroslav Terzić, and Bojan Vuletić, is the foundation for one of the most horrendously accurate depictions of modern teenage life.

Each character is fully developed and explored. The script pulls no punches and doesn’t try to shield any character from the bloodshed that has stained their hands, from the best friend to the teachers and staff of the school, all of whom, in one way or another, played a factor in the teen’s suicide.

The trip is used as a trap rather than an escape. Tzotza is forced to be around his classmates for an extended field trip that takes place over several days instead of hours.

This crafts a compelling and realistic form of suffocation and isolation, mirroring the realm of the online presence that is currently taking over youth. The film uses the internet and social media as part of its narration.

Using the trip to visually show how teens are constantly exposed, rather than for small periods of time with gaps in between, allows the film to create a visual representation of consistent pressure and emotional distress in real time.

“The trip is used as a trap rather than an escape.”

Three Weeks After does something most stories never do: it allows the characters to confront each other in a “safe space,” air out the emotional distress and reflections surrounding the suicide, and allows us, the viewer, to see the characters at their core.

Personally, the scene in which they explore that narrative and Tzotza calls everyone out for their role in his best friend’s death—even the teachers and staff, who are appalled by it yet show a certain level of defensiveness—showcases their guilt.

We see that Tzotza isn’t completely innocent in the matter. While he never bullied his friend directly, there was an incident where he betrayed his friend out of fear of retaliation from the bullies if he didn’t.

This showcases the true terror that is instilled in teens today from the ruthlessness of their peers and, on some level, the decay of society. But more importantly, there is a moment that becomes a trend, allowing us to see that it never stops. It merely continues to the next victim due to the lack of attention being brought to stopping it.

To say that Terzić’s vision is spectacular and brilliant feels wrong. Not because his efforts behind the camera don’t deserve the praise, but because they do.

Every technical aspect of this film is brilliant and spoke to me, creating an emotional connection to the film that felt appropriate given the context of each scene.

The pacing is spot-on, and the consistent and insightful tonal balance is uncanny and emotionally wrecking. Unlike 13 Reasons Why and Luckiest Girl Alive, where the stories focus on different aspects of suicide and what drives teens to that point, this captures the unbearable moments that one goes through until they hit that point.

His ability to capture that raw emotion and translate it to the screen is nothing short of spectacular.

“One of the best directed films of the year.”

Damian Radovanović’s cinematography is crisp, tight, and intentional. Every shot is perfectly lit and captures the tone of the scene.

The opening, with the little kid walking through the flames as we see a house on fire and others walking to the bus stop, is a wide shot that captures the emotional disconnect from person to person.

The sound mixing is genius, while at first confusing. We don’t—or at least I didn’t—quite understand the opening shots or the muted sound mixing until afterward, replaying the scenes in my head and thinking about how the opening leads to the events at hand.

That carries into the dark, isolated shots at night and throughout the caves. They are so dark that the events on screen are almost impossible to see, yet it enhances the emotional unease.

A risky chance to take, but one that paid off tenfold by elevating the emotional drive of the scene perfectly.

“His ability to capture that raw emotion and translate it to the screen is nothing short of spectacular.”

The performances are astonishing, capping off the film flawlessly and bringing the characters not only to life, but making them feel alive. The entire cast is phenomenal. Jovan Ginić gives a career-changing performance.

He brings the perfect blend of guilt and anger to the role while being able to remain timid and innocent, crafting the character perfectly and showcasing his depth and adaptability as an actor.

Alongside him, Tihana Lazović, who plays the head of class/teacher, gives a performance that stands out from the rest. The way she creates the emotional turmoil of grief, anger, and guilt is unparalleled by most of the cast.

Her character leans heavily toward being an antagonist, one who is indirectly responsible for the friend’s suicide—not responsible in the sense that she caused it, but because she didn’t step in and blames the kid for not being able to deal with his emotions. The victim playing the victim.

Her performance shows this level of resentment toward herself, as if she feels responsible even though she can’t admit it.

Three Weeks After is a painfully realistic and insightful look at the harsh realities of youth in the modern world. The film acts as more than merely a movie, but as an insightful look at a very real problem that continues to happen, while addressing issues parallel to it, like the aftermath of legal liability rather than what really matters: helping the kids and fixing the root cause instead of pretending it didn’t exist.

Related Reviews

One Minute to Midnight Review — Venice Film Festival 2026

What Belongs to Others Review: A Controlled, Insightful Character Drama | Venice Film Festival 2026