As Ukraine tenses, Kiev’s Independence Square becomes a 24/7 hub of political activity. The air is filled with bombastic political rhetoric, anthems, poems, and protest songs. Daily life scurries along on the margins of history. But the nights become increasingly fraught, and eventually the tensions spill over into the daytime. As the speaker system that once blared polemics against the government begins to bark orders to protesters turned foot soldiers, Maidan reveals the slow-burn transformation of festive protest into violent, life-and-death political struggle. Throughout the film, director Sergei Loznitsa captures the action with long static shots and minimal explication. The result is a political-economic Rorschach blot worthy of the age of Occupy, Ferguson, and the Arab Spring. Is Maidan documenting a protest? A riot? An occupation? A revolution? What’s the difference? (KP)