Documentary Film
Estonia 2008
67 min
Direction: Meelis Muhu
Language: Estonian/Russian with English subtitles

Most monuments erected during the Soviet regime were taken away after Estonia regained its independence in 1991. The Bronze Soldier Alyosha, located in the centre of Tallinn, remained in its place. For Estonian nationalists this monument was the symbol for Soviet occupation and marked the beginning of Stalinist repressions. However, for many Russians the monument was one of the few remaning symbols that connected them to Russia and Russian identity.

Documentary Alyosha brings us the people who gathered to the Bronze Soldier in 2005-2007 and whose behaviour created a new line in Estonian cultural memory. What mattered were the rituals around the monument, not the monument itself. Differences of opinion about history resulted in tragic conflicts and relocating the monument.