An unlikely hitwoman emerges as the heroine of the brand-new Serbian miniseries Absolute 100, created by Ivan Knežević and Srdan Golubović as a remake of Golubović’s debut 2001 film of the same name. The snappy thriller of six episodes lasting 50 minutes each (written by Knežević, Boris Grgurović, Nađa Petrović and Ljubica Luković) has enjoyed its world premiere in Karlovy Vary’s Special Screenings strand. Absolute 100 adopts dual pursuit-of-justice and cat-and-mouse-game narratives, and reframes them in a gripping way courtesy of its strong characters.

Nineteen-year-old Sonja (Anita Ognjanović) is a champion long-range rifle athlete who lives in Belgrade with her financially indebted war-veteran father, Dragan (Boris Isaković), and older brother Vuk (Miodrag Dragičević), the latter of whom works for Marko (Marko Grabež), a small-time gangster and son of a corrupt politician. When Vuk accidentally stumbles into Marko’s shady dealings, Sonja impulsively uses her unique skillset to take out the first threat to her brother, ill-prepared for the consequences. This pulls her and her family into a messy and violent underworld, all while being investigated by the persistent police inspector Mirković (Muhamed Hadžović). Is she helping herself and her family, or is she unintentionally making things worse?

Episodes one, five and six – arguably Absolute 100’s strongest instalments – are directed by Golubović, while the others are helmed by three of his former students: Stefan Ivančić, Katarina Mutić and Nikola Stojanović. One of the series' most arresting scenes comes at the end of episode five, with Ognjanović's heart-pounding performance on full display, keeping us in suspense with just a look: we see Sonja, on the phone and with her rifle scope trained on the newest threat to her family. Cinematographer Aleksandar Ilić, who lenses all six episodes, has his camera expertly aimed at our characters at close quarters, oscillating between a nervous intimacy and a much greater distance, a riveting choice that mirrors the sight on Sonja’s rifle. He also takes advantage of some fascinating camera moves, including dizzying zooms and dolly-zooms that put us right into our protagonist’s ever-spinning mind.

The work’s magnetic sense of tension is heightened by a repeated percussive motif designed to instil anxiety as Sonja’s troubles grow to fever pitch. At times, some points of discovery by Mirković feel a bit too convenient, with the slower middle episodes hinging on us buying the fallout that occurs in the first. However, Absolute 100 quickly pulls us back in with each new development, where the time spent with the characters allows us to penetrate deep into their minds, even without dialogue. With its young protagonist, the series also indirectly contributes to portraying a new breed of young Serbians dissatisfied by the complacency of past generations and the structural problems that persist.

Absolute 100 is a Serbian production by Firefly Productions and Telekom Srbija, and is sold by GoQuest Media.