Film Review: Disko & Tuumasõda

Disko & Tuumasõda (Disco & Atomic War)

2009, Director: Jaak Kilmi

After weeks of waiting for it to be sent by the mother-in-law from Tallin, it was with great anticipation that this film finally end up in the disused Playstation2 / DVD player. The wife had heard many great things about this little doco, reflected in the two awards credited to it. 

I must admit, the content of the movie was something I was only vaguely aware of and greatly underestimated the importance and significance of. You see, before I'd met my wife, I had no appreciation of how important t.v. from Finland would be in helping provide a view of the west to Estonians that you and I took for granted every day. I guess I assumed that where the waters edge was to the Baltic Sea was where the rest of the world dropped off. Not so. 

Although behind in terms of t.v. usage, Finland quickly caught up to Estonia in the 70's and 80's and their t.v. stations quickly found they also served a social role not only for their own citizens, but that of Estonia as well. By turning some of their transponders towards their smaller neighbor (only 80km away), they helped keep a population mentally (and some might say culturally) nourished. 

Whilst television is something you and I have taken for granted in Australia for many decades, interestingly enough, so have the Estonians. You see, the Russian government of the time saw the humble t.v. as a prime way of continuing the indoctrination of their "inducted" population, particularly in places like Estonia. Hence despite having barely enough of the right foods to eat, most homes in the Soviet era had t.v. Go figure! 

Disko & Tuumasõda is essentially one mans experiences and memories of how Western t.v. effected his life and that of the people around him. It also traces the history of how the humble t.v. along with assistance from Finnish t.v. programming was an important part in bringing down the Russian government. 

The movie details historical t.v. references such as 'Dallas' and 'Knight Rider'; memoirs of underground antenna builders and dodgy t.v. technicians; plus it has significant interviews with people of importance both in t.v. and government at the time. 

I guess what makes this film a true gem is that it helps to remind you that just when you think you know just about all there is to know about something....you know nothing. Whilst my wife watched it giggling to the many in-house joke references that you and I get but cant fully appreciate (because we weren't there), I watched with genuine interest the whole way through. A fascinating insight into a large fact about the fall of communism that seems to have slipped under the wests radder. Ironic considering the wests fascination with t.v.

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As a special footnote to this documentary, another documentary that touches on the importance of t.v. to Estonia is that of Australian broadcaster SBS's documentary - 'The Secret History of Eurovision'.
Of equal importance, relevance and entertainment, this documentary uses actual footage from 'Disco & Tuumasoda' to talk about how Eurovision had stiff competition from the Soviet Block in the shape of their own song competition - the "Intervision Song Contest".

"Mixing politics with pop and real international intrigue, this winning blend of humour and insight peers beyond the glitz and the sparkle to show that sometimes sequins and key changes can be as powerful as barbed wire and tanks."


A good watch but not quite as good as 'D&T'.