User Reviews

TATANKA is a personal documentary about the life of an important, yet little know, activist from the 1960's. Tatanka, the main character, worked alongside Cesar Chavez in obtaining rights for farmer workers in California in the 60's. He was there at the beginnings of Amnesty International. He worked as a political organizer with people like Joan Baez and David Harris. But the film goes way beyond the surface of Tatanka's life and shows the cost that this important, yet all consuming work had on his family. The film, made and narrated by his son, follows Tatanka's present day struggle in our capitalist world and where he does and does not fit in. He continues to follow his dreams despite living in a world that has moved on from these ideals. This documentary is both entertaining and deeply moving. Anyone who lived through this time or has parents who did will especially enjoy the story. But it's also a genuine look at this important time in American History that is often glossed over. Highly recommended.

I watched this great documentary at a recent film festival screening and was very impressed how director Jacob Bricca was able to mold this deeply personal story into a very engaging film narrative. It's a fascinating look at Jacob's father, from his time as a political activist in the sixties through the many reinventions he has gone through until today. As the Dad has been trying to adjust to the demands of supporting a family along with his various non-profit and (some for- profit) pursuits, he has also grown apart from his family in the process. It is wonderful to see how the undertaking of making this documentary seemingly has brought the filmmaker and his father closer together and like many family dramas it is very relatable to most of us. I highly recommend this film.

Is this documentary a "vanity project"? My answer would be no, as director Jacob Bricca takes an even-handed approach to examine and understand the life of his father Kit Bricca.

Emerging from a seemingly abusive home life, Kit Bricca would go on to be a nomadic idealist and activist, organizing and working for causes that he believed in, beginning in the 1960's. These would include the anti-Vietnam War movement, the fight for decent wages and working conditions with the United Farm Workers, Amnesty International, and settling himself and his family at the Institute for the Study of Nonviolence.

However, since activism normally doesn't pay very well, Bricca's quest to "change the world" would lead to financial strife for his family, and eventually result in the break-up of two marriages and estrangement from his children. When Bricca would enter the business world, he could, at times, be highly successful as a salesman, but his personal quest for fulfillment would always lead him away from that arena.

Thus, Jacob finds his father today in a new marriage to Carol Loewenstein, a health educator, and attempting to raise financing for a movie project with his friend and business partner E.F. Wyeth. As the director tries to piece together his father's life, there's a heartfelt segment involving Laura Marcus-Bricca, Kit's daughter from his second marriage. You can sense the love she still feels for her father, despite their lack of contact, yet you can also sense her emotional pain as well.

Overall, I imagine you could look at this documentary a number of different ways. However, as one reviewer on this site succinctly puts it it can be a movie about a son trying to understand his father, a man who put his idealism and attempts to make the world a better place above all else even if the personal costs were enormous. Those costs and scars would also extend to those closest to him.

To note: There were no subtitles available on my DVD copy.

My husband and I watched this last night and were equal parts blown away, heart broken and riveted. The main character is enigmatic and heroic, mystifying and naïve. His journey made us laugh at him, embrace him, hold him in high esteem as an example of an independent spirit who deeply cares about the planet and the rights of the less fortunate, a man to admire and follow. And then the circle would start again while we shook our heads in disbelief, then awe, then sadness, glued to the story the entire way.

Each chapter of his life was drawn with deep love by the filmmaker who maintained an eagle eye for honesty and truth, exposing his father's deep flaws and glorious altruisms. The editing is top notch and the use of graphics completely stunning.

It was overall a beautiful, crumbling, healing look into the truth about a father, which mirrors in some ways the complicated relationships we all have with ours, the difference being that this father abandoned his family to help others in a profound and political way.

I wasn't prepared for how hard it would grab my attention and keep it.

If someone you met in a bar told you this story, you wouldn't believe it. Seeing is believing.