In the major masterpiece of his most recent period, Zilnik orchestrates several complex scenes populated by large groups of people in heated arguments. Steering their improvised political discussion, Zilnik films with three cameras simultaneously and allows the antagonists to talk it over or even fight it out, refraining from offering any ready-made solutions.

The Old School of Capitalism is based on the first wave of worker revolts to hit Serbia upon the advent of capitalism. Desperate workers bulldoze through factory gates and are devastated to discover the site looted by the bosses. Eccentrically escalating confrontations, including a melee with workers in football shoulder pads and helmets and the boss and his security force in bulletproof vests, prove fruitless. Committed young anarchists offer solidarity, taking the bosses hostage. A Russian tycoon, a Wall Street trader and US Vice President Joe Biden’s visit to Belgrade unexpectedly complicate events that lead toward a shocking conclusion. Along the way, the film produces an increasingly complex and yet unfailingly lively account of present-day, in fact, up-to-the-minute struggles under the misery-inducing effects of both local and global capital.