Ask any ten people where "Gypsies" originated and you're apt to get ten different answers. Ask any ten people what's the first word that springs to mind when you say "Gypsy", and you're apt to get the same response: "thief". It's also probably a safe bet those same people were frightened as children with the old chesnut, "Behave, or the Gypsies will get you!". The stigma of land pirates with one hand on a crystal ball and the other on your wallet has haunted Gypsy culture since the beginning.
In reality "Gypsies" or "Rom" were nomadic peoples that migrated from Northern India in the 14th Century and over thousands of years have settled in just about every spot on the globe, many maintaining a rich sense of cultural identity and speaking the Romany language of their ancestors. The fact that many have had to resort to nefarious means to survive only adds to the myth and unfortunate impression of the people. As the old Gypsy saying goes, "When the road bends, it's hard to walk straight". Persecuted throughout history by everyone from the Nazis to the modern day "ethnic cleansers" in Kosovo, the Rom have survived and flourished despite the odds.
In the documentary Gypsy Caravan (aka When The Road Bends) , an attempt to afford them some due respect is given by exploring a joyous bond they all share, the uniting force of music. Rom music, embracing such diverse genres as Raga and Flamenco, is like its performers, a wild mix of the reverent and the devil-may-care.
Gypsy Caravan seeks to weave these rhythmic threads together by following five Gypsy groups on a whirlwind tour of North America. The spectrum of blood-tied musicians is amazing. We have Antonio El Pipa & His Flamenco Ensemble from Spain, Maharaja from India, Esma Redzepova from Macedonia, and Fanfare Ciocarilia and Taraf De Haidouks (Band Of Outlaws) from Romania. Watching as they bond and share music over six weeks on the road is an exciting prospect that is unfortunately repeatedly dulled by the film makers. Dubbed the "Buena Vista Social Club" of Gypsy music, Gypsy Caravan is a decidedly lukewarm endeavour that lacks that film's spark.
Written, produced, and directed by Jasmine Dellal creator of reality TV's "Beauty School", the proceedings are too often rendered perfunctory rather than powerful. The prescence of the great documentarian Albert Maysles as cinematographer is equally disappointing as the puzzling overall camcorder look betrays his reputation as one of the innovators of the documentary form. Perhaps the greatest frustration is the short shrift and screen time that is actually given to the musical performances themselves.
By juxtaposing the tedium of the tour bus with vignettes from each performers home the film's whiplash approach strives for emotional depth yet falls flat. The brief peeks into their backgrounds are tantalizing and over too quickly and we're back to five minute stretches of the exciting luggage restrictions on airplanes.
The film does have some bright spots in certain "characters" from the groups. Aside from Antonio El Pipa who frankly seems to be on board due to his matinee idol looks, rather than his Flamenco skills, there are some choice moments with the performers where the film really shines.
We see Harish Kamar from Maharaja, who performs as a female, fussing over his saris, and transforming into his striking feminine self to do the dervish style knee dance. We listen as the crusty patriarch and self professed "star" of Taraf De Haidouks, Nicolai Neaucescu (who sadly died during filming), reminesces about his life and his lust for women. Along the way we are also treated to scenes and sensibilities foreign to Western eyes, a mournful Gypsy funeral and Taraf's Caliu as he rejoices at the marriage of his nineteen year old son to a thirteen! year old village girl. It's in these sequences, and the truncated musical numbers, that one gets a glimpse of what a truly great film this could have been.
RATING: 2 1/2 BANANAS
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