‘Resynator’ Review – A Raw And Emotional Exploration Of The Past [SXSW 2024]

While watching the new documentary Resynator, you’ll be struck by the raw intimacy. The death of a parent can have the same emotional impact as one who abandons their family willingly. It’s an ominous cloud with the same long-lasting effects as rocks stuck on the bottom of a rapid river floor taking shape for decades. Insecurities can come to the forefront because of low self-esteem. Even self-perception can be impacted, questioning if you indeed can be loved.

Luckily, Resynator’s director (and inadvertent subject), Alison Tavel, grew up with love after her biological father’s death. She has a stepfather, whom she considers her dad, who never made her feel unwanted or unloved. At the age of ten weeks old, Alison’s biological father died in a car crash, with many questioning the circumstances around his death.

Alison only knows her birth father, Don, through the lore of archives and old family stories. These now amount to legends that are almost mythical to Alison. Don was known for being an ambitious genius, constantly inventing something. One of those flashes of genius refers to the documentary film’s title, “Resynator,” which is a pitch-tracking synthesizer that combines various effects and sounds into one unit.

From there, Ms. Tavel’s documentary film uses a revolutionary piece of musical equipment to tell a story of identity, not only of her father’s but also of her own. To this reviewer, the story combines the documentary film Who Killed the Electric Car? and one of the best of its kind to come out this century, Minding the Gap. That’s because Ms. Tavel’s film works on two different levels.

One explores why the Resynator never became a household name. The other is about haunting family memories that shine a light on the anatomy of a crumbling marriage with notes of abuse. The result is a lens without a filter. The viewer sees a man with complete flaws displayed in a singular view. In that context, it’s refreshing, primarily because the director loves them just as much as Don’s prodigious intellect.

That includes letters from Don plainly speaking to his ex-wife about his upbringing. This leads to speculation about his alleged alcoholism and a choice Alison’s mother made shortly after giving birth to her. Some may find it harsh, and undoubtedly, Don’s family did. However, in the film’s most raw and moving scene, the filmmaker’s mother breaks down, which brings sobering heartache.

Nothing can prepare you for that moment, and that’s why Resynator is worth watching. It’s a perfect example of damaging effects that can last a lifetime. However, you can feel it in your bones when exploring this family divide. Ms. Tavel protects the maternal side of her family, which makes the story feel somewhat incomplete, but the viewer can also respect the filmmaker’s choice here.

Ms. Tavel’s documentary engages in a conversation with her paternal uncle, narrating the story of how they blame her mother for her father’s death. You can understand how her father’s family perhaps unfairly displaced their grief and how hard that must have been on a new mother.

You’ll notice the fine line Don’s family walks when talking to Alison. The love and respect her father’s side of the family shows Ms. Tavel is evident. Perhaps this is why it appears they are holding back after not being part of her life for decades.

Ultimately, Resynator works as a deeply personal story about the discovery. Those delicate moments peel back intimate layers that have gathered dust for decades, now painfully exposed. Some of those moments in Resynator have the power of a wrecking ball, contributing to Ms. Tavel’s raw and emotional film.

Resynator had its World Premiere at SXSW 2024 in the Documentary Feature Competition section. 

Director: Alison Tavel

Rated: NR

Runtime: 96m

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qu6KZjsAM0A]