The Rule of the Gun
Blood feuds in Albania
Law and order have abandoned Albania. Nowhere is safe from banditry fuelled by hundreds of thousands of illegal weapons. Ordinary people have resurrected an ancient Albanian text, the 'Book of Lek', a powerful creed of vengeance. Skander Lilaj is searching for his missing brother kidnapped from a cafe in Vlore. He finds a hidden badly mutilated body, but as he tries to report the crime the choas at the police station leaves us in no doubt that if Skander and his family are to get justice, they are going to have to get it for themselves. The family mourn at the graveside. They share their grief and frustration at the impotence of the police. But if they avenge the killing themselves they may start a blood fued that will echo through the generations to come.
A report by Martin Adler.
10.23.05.09 opening shot pan across hill side settlement
10.23.13.22 woman crying hysterically over headstone
10.23.38.07 police tank driving through streets.
10.23.58.00 man in multicoloured balaclava
10.24.02.03 busy market place
10.24.20.11 stereo focussed shot
10.24.25.16 large lorry driving into view with voiceover
10.25.14.15 sniper over looking city
10.25.20.00 children playing on destroyed car with fake guns
10.25.32.07 lower class estate property
10.25.36.20 man in family home looking at family photos talking to camera
10.25.57.16 burnt out van military guards nearby
10.26.16.04 armed military/police-checking cars and passengers
10.26.57.22 room full of weaponry
10.27.06.20 lorry loaded with machine gun and ammo
10.27.28.23 hospitalised man with bandaged face
10.27.56.23 surgery taking place
10.29.01.23 man entering dark cave voiceover looking for brother body
10.29.27.16 lorry driving alongside water, driver gets out to talk to camera then walks through fields
10.30.16.24 lorry driver talking to cattle farmer
10.31.14.16 informal burial of coffin
10.31.26.01 elderly man in street followed as armed police guarding police station
10.32.57.03 same elderly man talks to camera (foreign language)
10.33.12.19 women cleaning/tidying graveyard
10.33.23.21 women crying whilst arranging flowers
FULL SYNOPSIS
10.23.13.22 woman crying hysterically over headstone
10.23.38.07 police tank driving through streets.
10.23.58.00 man in multicoloured balaclava
10.24.02.03 busy market place
10.24.20.11 stereo focussed shot
10.24.25.16 large lorry driving into view with voiceover
10.25.14.15 sniper over looking city
10.25.20.00 children playing on destroyed car with fake guns
10.25.32.07 lower class estate property
10.25.36.20 man in family home looking at family photos talking to camera
10.25.57.16 burnt out van military guards nearby
10.26.16.04 armed military/police-checking cars and passengers
10.26.57.22 room full of weaponry
10.27.06.20 lorry loaded with machine gun and ammo
10.27.28.23 hospitalised man with bandaged face
10.27.56.23 surgery taking place
10.29.01.23 man entering dark cave voiceover looking for brother body
10.29.27.16 lorry driving alongside water, driver gets out to talk to camera then walks through fields
10.30.16.24 lorry driver talking to cattle farmer
10.31.14.16 informal burial of coffin
10.31.26.01 elderly man in street followed as armed police guarding police station
10.32.57.03 same elderly man talks to camera (foreign language)
10.33.12.19 women cleaning/tidying graveyard
10.33.23.21 women crying whilst arranging flowers