Checkmate - Strategy of a Revolution

How does one trigger a revolution? In the Romanian uprising against the dictator Ceaucescu in 1989, everything seemed to happen by itself. The people were fed up with his absolute totalitarianism, and were plagued by poverty and terror. There comes a time when action must be taken! But, it turns out that history is not that simple, as this investigative documentary proves. The film is a thorough and revealing reconstruction of the events leading up to Ceaucescu’s downfall and execution. In actual fact, the Romanian revolution was a strictly managed operation, controlled from the outside. Hungary, Germany and especially America had big fingers in the pie. The strategies used ranged from anti-Ceaucescu propaganda to the organized training of civilians as armed revolutionaries. The stakes of this geo-political game were much higher than just the well-being of the Romanian people. Ceaucescu had to leave because he thwarted the unity of Europe and the definitive collapse of communism. In this highly convincing work, filmmaker Susanne Brandstätter clarifies the larger issues on the political world stage, but also proves that revolutions, no matter how well prepared, never take place without innocent victims. A painful conclusion.