I have just come from what I believe was the final showing of your film at the Village East Cinema and I am again, as they say, blown away.If this doesn't end up on the Shortlist I think we should raze Hollywood.This extraordinary documentary has helped put into stone the fact that this was one of THE most important events in the Twentieth Century. And, as the cliché says, you could have heard a pin drop at any moment in the showing I saw. Everyone was completely rapt beginning to end. Not only that, but I would say that all but about three stayed through all of the credits!

Torn from the Flag - How can I convey in words the emotion I felt and the education I received watching this documentary and do it justice?This documentary film shows the dramatic events which led to the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 and consequently the collapse of the USSR Communist state decades later. The producers interviewed several actual Freedom Fighters and other participants with various points of view, so Torn from the Flag is not a mere repetition of the same news stories of the Hungarian Revolution we have heard many times before. In fact, in 90 minutes, the audience is shocked, brought to tears, witnesses the bloody struggle and the apparent short-lived victory which was achieved by the Freedom Fighters. Days later, the Hungarians' joy of freedom and hope for independence was brutally crushed by a merciless, overbearing dictatorial superpower, which was followed by severe retribution by the new communist government. Desperation replaced hope in Hungary, and the world stood by and did nothing. Why did the free world allow this suppression of liberty?This story must be told and kept alive so that current generations better understand what occurred and future generations do not forget this struggle for freedom.Thank you, Ms.Kovacs and company for this valiant production!

Torn from the Flag is a very good, dynamic, emotional film about freedom. In 1956, Hungary, a tiny nation of only 10 million people rose against tyranny and with the Hungarian army's help won against the Soviet army who had been "temporarily" in Hungary since WWII. The Hungarians were free for 13 days. Even though the revolt was then militarily defeated, the spirit of freedom never died. Hungary's revolt influenced other nations to stand up against the communist system. Multi-talented filmmaker (Producer, Director, Writer) Klaudia Kovacs dreamt the story and carried through her dream. Hungarian history is a living testimony: only temporarily can you keep a nation under terror. Today, as we know very well, many nations need to have their flag "torn." Instead of vengeance, love, understanding and humanism need to come!

After seeing the film, these are the initial words that came to my mind: FAIR, BALANCED AND EXTREMELY PROFESSIONALLY DONE! It is very hard not to be biased about this subject matter especially when almost all involved making this film are or were affected by that era. I am not just referring to the Freedom Fighters in 1956; I am also talking about those who were raised under Communism. One might think that this film could present an excellent opportunity for venting, for hatred and everything that comes with that point of view; however the film avoids it by all means. It shows both sides and gives a great historical recap of events before, during and after 1956. The film would stand in history and could be shown to future generations, as it is without bias or distortion about what happened. For that, the filmmakers should be proud of themselves. The film's style may give you the feel of a History Channel program. I think that might be the case because of the outstanding production value and excellent professional work that we see on those TV programs. Today's documentary style is predominantly personal stories, sometimes shot with a skeleton crew and shaky camera. Because this film's professional look, one might think of television. Make no mistake, this is a feature documentary that would stand in competition with others in film festivals and would have a great chance to rise above them. The technical aspect: I would pay attention to the fantastic sound editing! Also, the cinematographer's choice of showing the participants' faces in shadow is actually a fantastic choice. It makes it look interesting, because we listen to their voice more so than watching the face that tells us the story or comments. The use of music is almost an extra character in the film; the choices are superb. Overall, I liked the film. As a Hungarian, I imagine it likely speaks to me more than it might to a non- Hungarian. However, non-Hungarian can use these historical events as a comparison to current events. The documentary films we see nowadays, such as Michael Moore's Roger and Me or Morgan Spurlock's Super Size Me, started a trend: take on gigantic corporations and fight them like Don Quixote. This film shows and states that this small country, Hungary, was able to fight a giant like the Soviet Union…and fought it by itself, without any help. If the audience takes away from this film nothing else but this message of courage, it is worthwhile.