No Man's Land

During the Bosnian War, two wounded soldiers, a Bosniak named Čiki and a Bosnian Serb named Nino, are caught between their lines in no man's land. The two soldiers confront each other in a trench, where they wait for dark. Trading insults at first, they eventually begin to find some common ground. Confounding the situation is another wounded Bosniak soldier named Cera who wakes from unconsciousness. A land mine has been buried beneath him by the Bosnian Serbs; should he make any move, the mine will explode. A French Army sergeant named Marchand, of the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR), gets involved in an effort to help the three trapped soldiers, despite initial orders to the contrary by high command. UNPROFOR's mission in Bosnia is to guard humanitarian aid convoys, remain neutral, and act as a mere bystander. Fortunately, a British reporter arrives on scene, bringing media pressure to bear that moves the UN high command to swing into action to try to save the soldiers. A row between the stressed out and fatigued Čiki and Nino gradually escalates even after being rescued. Eventually, Čiki shoots Nino and in turn is shot by a UN Peacekeeper. Meanwhile, it is discovered that the mine underneath Cera cannot be defused. The UN high command tries to save face; they lie, saying that Cera has been saved and they leave the area, along with the reporters and everyone else. In reality, Cera is left alone and desolate in the trenches, still immobilized by the mine. Meanwhile, the UN commander has arranged false information to be passed to both Bosnian and Serb forces, in order to make them believe that their enemies will be trying to reoccupy the trench at night (which each side would try to counter with an artillery barrage that will presumably kill Cera and destroy the evidence).

Plot from No Man's Land (2001 film)CC BY-SA 4.0