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Maidan (2014)
Feels the moment but fails to explain it
Much of the raw emotion of Ukraine's revolution of dignity is reflected in this work, but the context is lost for lack of details. The result is a moving but disjointed telling "about" rather than "of" the three-month human drama that unfolded on the main square ("maidan") of the capital.
The rich personal panorama includes moving video clips of the people on the barricades as they worked, fought, and lived together in a community they created. In every face in every frame we see joy, sorrow, pain, exhaustion, anger, anguish, and above all hope. That alone will make this film worthwhile for many.
If you already know intimately the experience of Maidan, this film will satisfy. If not, I suggest you view the significantly better documentary "Winter of Fire." If then you want to see and feel even more, check out "Maidan."
Maidan Massacre (2014)
Poorly made propaganda
This piece of fluff not only bores but delivers nothing in its attempt to convince that black is white, up is down, and the murder of more than 100 civilians by sniper fire during the final three days of Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity could not possibly be the fault of the militarily trained riot police.
The film would have you believe that the actual number of deaths was less than half of what previously had been reported from medical records. And that this reduced total includes some unspecified number of police deaths, none of which previously had been reported by medical or even police administrators. And that all those other dead non- police people must have been shot by ... well, it never really says. Or even suggests. But it was someone else. Absolutely.
But none of that matters! Because, according to each of the police officers interviewed at great and repetitive length, the protesters shot first. Yes! A protester "sniper" opened up with a shotgun at a range of - believe it or not - more than 100 meters. That's more than twice the effective range of a shotgun.
If you don't already believe all of this nonsense, don't waste a single minute enduring more.
Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom (2015)
Dramatic and Accurate Account
An excellent collection of video and comments are crafted into an elegant telling - without narration - of a grassroots struggle for dignity on the main square ("Maidan" in Ukrainian) in the capital. This violent but uplifting drama is easily the best of the Maidan documentaries released thus far. Don't miss it.
This film raises two very misunderstood facts about the Ukrainian revolution.
First, the "re-vo-lu-tion" was triggered not by the government's reversal about joining the EU but by the brutal dispersal on Nov. 30 of peaceful pro-EU demonstrators. The next day saw the "march of the millions" protesting the president's decision to assault a non- threatening group composed mostly of college students. "Euromaidan" lasted only 10 days. On December 1 a nation arose - again peacefully - and "strong men came out to declare that no one will ever hurt children in this country."
Second, protesters did not "topple" the president. Victor Yanukovich was legally removed from office by vote of the national parliament (Rada) after he fled the country. He knew that he would face criminal charges for his actions, not to mention the mind-boggling level of corruption in his government.
Because this story is told by the participants - through their words and images, with excellent subtitles - it will appear to some as "biased." But a "counter-balanced" documentary would be difficult. The chronology and video testimonies are incontrovertible, and gathering opposing perspectives will be difficult because participants are unavailable. Yanukovich and his cabinet ministers are internationally wanted criminals granted asylum in Russia after they stole hundreds of millions of dollars from the country they bankrupted (the reason the government was seeking aid from European Union). The Berkut ("eagles") also mostly fled to Russia, although some later were photographed participating in the Russian takeover of Crimea.
The film's portrayal corresponds with my experience during a visit mid-January. People of all social and economic backgrounds were living cheerfully under democratically established rules, chief of which was a ban on all alcohol. The "Maidan Village" was described in a London newspaper under the headline, "Ukrainians Teach Their Leaders How to Govern."
Present were people from all regions, including the Donbas and Crimea. More than one-third of the people on Maidan spoke Russian as their primary language. The myth of divisions over language and ethnicity are a concocted pretense for Kremlin attempts to regain control of region called "Little Russia" for more than a century before the birth of the Soviet Union.
This documentary invites you to see and meet these ordinary people and experience their extraordinary story.