After The Velvet Revolution; Romania: The Damned ­Dynasty

In the wake of the fall of communism in Eastern Europe, new documentaries chronicling aspects of the revolution or a nascent democracy's first tentative steps continue to appear. Apparently meant to be a series, After the Velvet Revolution, which recently won a Silver Apple at the National Educational Film & Video Festival, looks at a group of five families and individuals and how their lives have changed following the relatively bloodless overthrow of communism in Czechoslovakia in 1989. Structured much like Michael Apted's series about British youth growing into adulthood (28 Up, 35 Up), After the Velvet Revolution intends to revisit its interviewees every two years for an update. One family struggles with the co-op to regain private control over their land; another family opens an antique shop; a former rock and roll singer becomes rich and a member of Parliament; a student revolutionary plans to publish a small literary magazine. The problem with After the Velvet Revolution is that there is no overarching point of view here, nor have the filmmakers bothered to find out what's particularly interesting about this group of people. The rock singer who becomes independently wealthy yet cannot cut his ties to political activism is a story ripe for exploration--but his face is a blank, his motivations unknown. Six or eight years from now when the filmmakers have enough material on these people to present more than a surface treatment of their present day lives, perhaps After the Velvet Revolution will prove to be an experiment bearing worthy fruit. At this point, however--even though parts of the initial program are interesting--the jury is still out.Narrated by former CBS correspondent Bill Kurtis, Romania: The Damned Dynasty is an overbearing and semi-exploitative look at the bloody revolution in December, 1989, which culminated in the executions of Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife Elena. Interspersing bits of Romanian history with fuzzy video footage of death and destruction, this Romanian production is filled with purple prose and nationalistic jingoism. Comparing the political overthrow of the "bloody revolution" to the way American elections are held, narrator Kurtis--who apparently doesn't give a damn about what he's reading--says "we take our hats off to the Romanians." Too, the program often shifts into present tense when detailing the battles between the Securitate and the people. As we watch a funeral, Kurtis's narration intones: "the macabre dance for power engages feverishly." It's that kind of Gothic-speak, coupled with the unexamined "heroic" point-of-view (in which dead men and women become verbal fodder for speechmakers), that makes Romania: The Damned Dynasty such an ugly viewing experience.Too, a blaring soundtrack alternating between semi-classical and modern jazz--which is totally out of place--runs throughout. From an historical perspective, the film does offer "real" footage of the more tragic aspects of the Romanian revolution, but it's wrapped in simplistic rhetoric rather than thoughtful commentary.After the Velvet Revolution is not a necessary purchase. Romania: The Damned Dynasty is not recommended. (After the Velvet Revolution is available from: The Video Project, 5332 College Ave., Suite 101, Oakland, CA 94618; (800) 4-PLANET.) (Romania: The Damned Dynasty is available from: Chip Taylor Communications, 15 Spollett Dr., Derry, NH 03038; (800) 876-CHIP.)