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THE SINGING REVOLUTION
Directed by James Tusty & Maureen Castle Tusty
Written by Tusty, Castle Tusty & Mike Majoros
Director of Photography, Miguelangel Aponte-Rios
Edited by Majoros
Music by John Kusiak
Released by Abramorama
USA/Estonia. 94 min. Not Rated
Narrated by Linda Hunt

The perfect holiday gift awaits at select theatres: a moving documentary about the power of song. Don’t be surprised if you feel goose flesh when you hear tens of thousands of voices fill the theater with soaring choral music.

Lovingly rendered by James and Maureen Castle Tusty, The Singing Revolution reveals how Estonians pried open the Soviet Union’s iron grip in 1991 by patiently and persistently lifting their voices in non-violent protest. Their call for freedom fueled the movement for independence across Eastern Europe.

The directors faced the daunting task of unearthing hundreds of reels of archival footage – even tracking down rare Soviet Gulag scenes culled from Stalinist propaganda films. James Tusty is culturally invested in the project; his father emigrated to the U.S. from Estonia as a child in 1924. Tearful recounting of the revolution by friends and family inspired the film. The directors have extensive experience, including PBS credits for Maureen and Eastern European productions for James, but The Singing Revolution is the first feature-length film for the pair. It is an impressive achievement worthy of Academy Award consideration.

The images and voices from the Laulupidu music festival, founded in 1869, steal the show, but original music by John Kusiak lends tension to sections of the film that could have become a grim history lesson on the plight of the Estonian people. (Post-WWII atrocities at the hands of the Soviets included nearly 50 years of torture, deportation, forced labor, and cultural and religious persecution.)

A conductor’s words give voice to the feelings of the Estonians: “To have freedom through singing was the most important thing, maybe, in my life.” His interview is just one of dozens of spirited, firsthand accounts from politicians, educators, and musicians, giving the film a sense of balance and historical perspective. The Estonian’s love of the film is contagious; it’s almost impossible to find fault with this tribute to hope through music. Elisa Klein
December 14, 2007