Strangler vs. Strangler

Strangler vs. Strangler
The DVD release cover
Directed by	Slobodan Šijan
Written by	Slobodan Šijan Nebojša Pajkić
Starring	Taško Načić Srđan Šaper Sonja Savić Nikola Simić
Music by	Srđan Šaper Vuk Kulenović
Distributed by	Centar film
Release date	1984
Running time	93 minutes
Country	Yugoslavia
Language	Serbo-Croatian

Strangler vs. Strangler (Serbo-Croatian: Davitelj protiv davitelja) is a 1984 Yugoslav film featuring elements of comedy, thriller and horror genres.

In the mid-1980s Belgrade finally gets its first serial killer: an awkward carnations seller named Pera Mitić (Taško Načić). Mitić is an overweight 48-year-old man who is in an Oedipus kind of way connected to his aging mother. His mother often punishes him when he does not sell any of the carnation flowers. His punishments include kneeling on nutshells while being slapped by his mother or being locked in the water tank. This is the reason why he starts killing every girl who refuses to buy his flowers. Mitić's character can be compared to Norman Bates's character and relationship with his mother.

After the first murder, mostly incompetent inspector Ognjen Strahinjić (Nikola Simić) starts the investigation. His attempt to catch the strangler by employing an undercover agent, Rodoljub Jovanović (Branislav Zeremski), ends up tragically. Strahinjić is a loner who lives only with his cat George, who is his best friend. He is a short man, with a thin mustache and is similar to Inspector Clouseau from the Blake Edwards's The Pink Panther series. The plot gets even more complicated when a rock star Spiridon Kopicl (Srđan Šaper) obsessed with the strangler records the song "Bejbi, bejbi" ("Baby, Baby"), with his band VIS Simboli, dedicated to the strangler which immediately became nationwide hit.