A documentary in the truest sense of the word, “European Tour ’73,” written and directed by Ross Munro, feels like something your grandfather might have shot on holiday—and believe me, that’s a good thing. The documentary short, at under 15 minutes, chronicles one family’s trip from Canada to Europe, highlighting important issues of the ‘70s and before. It also cycles through some familiar themes…history has a way of repeating itself; and with Munro’s upbeat and energetic narration style, the film has a more personal and emotional touch. It’s an open window into his family’s life, and, ultimately, a welcome one.
When I mention the film is shot like a family vacation from the ‘70s—I’m not kidding. The documentary, interspersed with rather impressive animation sequences, is mostly archival footage from Munro’s family’s trip to Europe in 1973, shot on Super 8mm tape. It causes the film to wash over you, to make you feel the nostalgia for this bygone era, and to also appreciate the sense of imagination the reels bring to the short. It takes viewers into the picture, and lets them feel what a home video feels like, back when that really meant something. As a child, my dad had a Canon SLR. We’d get back from a yearly trip to Canada and develop them. What a time lapse! In a day and age of smartphones and instant access to digital media, Munro’s documentary feels like an injection of peaceful nostalgia.
The overall point of “European Tour ’73” is, on the surface, to chronicle his family’s journey from Winnipeg to Europe, but on a more serious note, it’s the mission of Ross’ father to connect his five young children to the the steps his own father took as a member of the Canadian military during World War II. Munro’s love of film and pop culture help to ease us into these territories as he remarks of England that it is ‘home of the fictional martini-drinking spy,’ and bookends this by showing poster advertisements of the latest James Bond film starring Roger Moore that Munro, a film lover, would have to miss to embark on this European journey.
The strong point of this documentary is the seamless narration by Munro, which is upbeat and prosaic, and the Super 8 filmography that makes a bygone era seem like it happened just yesterday. Munro speckles the film with jokes: anecdotes about his father’s love of tourist landmarks (the Eiffel Tower and the Palace of Westminster among its chief landmarks), and tongue in cheek jabs at social commentary. His observations of the crumbling presidency of President Nixon, as well as threats of war and fighting socialist/’red’ threats, are juxtaposed to the world’s current political climate, but flipped over. His observations are part of a larger picture, not partisan but realist, and one can’t help but to be connected to his unique documentary style.
On its underbelly, “European Tour ’73” is just fun to watch. You feel connected to this family, feel connected to its source material, and feel drawn in by the way Munro turns an innocent family history into salient material all can connect with. His humor hits the mark when appropriate (jokes about his mother knowing just enough French to make sure they score good baguettes is clever), while his narration of the film’s most serious sequence—film footage inside a Nazi concentration camp—makes the material more accessible, and less monstrous than it should be. He approaches it as a moment in history; and his steady, light intonation reminded me of Roberto Benigni’s spellbinding “Life is Beautiful” in its hopeful approach.
Munro told me that he went into the film focusing on his own family, but ended up stumbling on something that transcended it, and something that everyone could relate to. But Munro has surpassed that. He has made a welcoming picture that could have been any family’s story in the 1970s, whether Canadian, European, or American. The cultural references of this decade are hammered home with exactness, the film’s landscapes are documented with joyful exuberance, and, like a family heirloom, seems like something that can be passed down from generation to generation.
All in all, “European Tour ’73” is a good documentary, more personal than we’re used to seeing, and is definitely worth a viewing. The documentary just finished screening at the Lunenburgh Film Festival (Canada) and the American Documentary Film Festival (USA). The film is slated for screening at the upcoming Oregon State International Film Festival from Oct 19-Oct 24, 2020.
