Another Spring

The eradication of smallpox represents one of modern medicine’s greatest triumphs, but it wasn’t so long ago that this treacherous, highly contagious disease killed millions of people each year. In 1972 a now little known chapter in the history of smallpox played out in Yugoslavia during what would be Europe’s last smallpox epidemic. This gripping archival documentary, aptly described by its creators as a medical thriller, reconstructs the dramatic events of those spring months, when Yugoslavia expended almost inconceivable efforts in order to contain the rapidly spreading danger. Anyone fascinated by history will find it difficult not to draw comparisons with the worldwide events of the past two years. (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)