Series/Festivals

Week of December 31, 2003

A A A Comments (0) Wednesday, Dec 31 2003

Made in Estonia (unrated) Rando Pettai. Director Rando Pettai anchors this fanciful story in a Tallinn radio station, with two male hosts broadcasting a live drama peopled with a cast of bumbling characters: men seeking romance, flirtatious women and bullying, silly rubes. In the radio play, the inept Estonian government sends a man named Vaino to a rural southern city and a shambles of a house. Manufactured confrontations occur, and each is a futile attempt to add energy to a premise meant to parody bureaucratic and personal foibles, with the two hosts reading all of the roles and appearing in multiple male and female personas. Shot digitally on location in Mustla and Tallinn, the look is serviceable but never captivating. Despite some chuckles and smiles along the way, Made in Estonia's promising idea falls flat because of its consistently heavy-handed execution, uninspired lampooning and unappealing sexism. Screens at 7 p.m. Friday, January 2, through Sunday, January 4, in the Moore Auditorium on the campus of Webster University, 470 E. Lockwood Avenue. Call 314-968-7487 for more information. (Diane Carson)