"In the Land of Blood and Honey" Lawsuit, Angelina Jolie Wins

The actress was sued just weeks before Blood and Honey hit theaters in late 2011. Braddock alleged that the film about a love affair during the Bosnian Civil War violates his copyright on a book, The Soul Shattering. According to Braddock's lawsuit, one of the film's producers, Edin Sarkic, who has been credited in the press with helping Jolie attain the necessary permits to film in Sarajevo, had read The Soul Shattering and had discussions over the possibility of creating a film adaptation of the book.

But according to a tentative decision by U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee, the works are not substantially similar, and a result, Braddock has been ordered to show cause why the action should not be dismissed with prejudice.

UPDATE: The decision has now been made final. Read the ruling in full here...
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/sites/default/files/custom/Documents/ESQ/Dismissal_Order.pdf

Braddock's book Slamanje Duse was published in 2007, and it came out in shorter form in English under the title, The Soul Shattering. His work is set in 1992 in a small Bosnian village and features a Croat who is married to a Muslim when their lives are interrupted by war. Ultimately, the strength of their love brings them back together.

When analyzing the plot and sequence of both works, Gee noted some of the similarities including the fact that both include escape sequences and brutal rape scenes. But that's not enough. The judge says Braddock can't have claimed to have "invented the concept of rape as a war crime" and says that whatever similarities there are in this regard don't rise to substantial similarity, "particularly in light of the fact that those overlapping concepts are commonplace in books and films depicting war."

Similarly, when analyzing theme, the judge admits some similarity but stresses the differences. "Blood and Honey is primarily a story of betrayal, revenge and tragedy with little or no hope, while Slamanje Duse focuses on family, love and strength."

In the decision, the judge continued by exploring dialogue, the mood and the characters of both works. Parallels were drawn and then rejected as falling short.



 UPDATE:  A federal judge finds that "In the Land of Blood and Honey" is not substantially similar to a Croatian journalist's novel.

Read More... http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/angelina-jolie-scores-victory-blood-431815