Truth and Justice (Tanel Toom, 2019): Estonia

Reviewed by Kate Marsden. Viewed at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2020.

Truth and Justice is an adaptation of a 677 page long Estonian classic that is required reading in high schools across the country. It stretches over the span of 24 years and follows the rivalry between two neighbors, Pearu and Andres along with the difficult way of life that comes along with tending to 1800s Estonian farmland.

I was lucky enough to take part in a Director’s Q and A with Tanel Toom after the screening and received a lot of fascinating insight into what went into making the film, the multifaceted meanings of various scenes/shots and what Toom wanted audiences to remember, notice and feel while watching this moving piece.

Toom mentioned how he wanted the silent dialogue to say something, create build, charge the tension and control the audience which I personally believe highlights the suppression of emotions that Estonian culture holds, back then and even to this day. Toom further spoke on this matter, saying that Estonian men don’t express their feelings, which is portrayed even though much of the dialogue is already excluded. Something that Toom said while speaking on this gender norm that affects the men of his country present-day is that directing is turning psychology into behavior which Toom did so and very powerfully might I add throughout this film. Toom also said that although humans rely on words, words are the least effective form of communication (ex. lying).

When it came to the actual filming of the project, Toom spoke on the fact that it was a huge challenge to capture all the necessary seasons that take place across the 24 years of the film.

Although Toom teaches directing in Estonia, he was anxious about working with the lead (Priit Loog) who wasn’t a very experienced actor at the time. I would have never guessed that Loog didn’t have much experience prior to this project because his intensely moving performance says otherwise.

Toom also gave the behind-the-scenes scoop on the music of the film which I found to be profoundly interesting. Toom originally planned on being a musician before he made his way into the filmmaking world so he worked closely with composer Mihkel Zimmer to create the sound story he really wanted for this film thus making the structure of music very close to the film. Toom didn’t hear brass for this movie, mostly strings and piano and a focus on rhythm. He even included the use of wooden sticks and stones because those sounds belong to that world/time period.

Toom also noted that Robber’s Rise (the location and setting where the story takes place) is one of the most important characters of the film. The change of seasons that Robber’s Rise goes through, the mishaps on the land that affect the characters so drastically and the family/friend/colleague dynamics that get shaken by it are the foundation for the development of the plot.

In conclusion, this was one of the most powerful films that I saw at the festival. I would recommend it to anyone that wants to gets immersed in a different culture and reality that is much different from their own but then also go on to recognize the basic struggles of humanity that remain the same throughout history and across the globe.