The Crazy Stranger
(Gadjo Dilo)
Picture: C+
Sound: B- Extras: C- Film: B-
Why would anyone want to be a gypsy? Is there always such a thing as choice? What is a gypsy? All over the media, even after Nazi persecution and worse, there
has been quite a marginalized representation of what that means and who they
are. Because they often have
freewheeling lifestyles, they are automatically made out to be thieves because
“they never hold down jobs” or “never stay in one place” or the like. One of Cher’s biggest hits remains Gypsies,
Tramps & Thieves, while the idea that they remain at large untied to
any kind of conformity remains as much a threat as the counterculture, even if
they are not exactly in The United States much. Tony Gatlif’s The Crazy Stranger (Gadjo Dilo) shows the
lifestyle without moral judgments either way and including some of the appeal
this might have for some.
The 1998 film involves Stephane, who becomes involved in a
band of gypsies and quickly becomes enthralled with the lifestyle that includes
drinking, sex, dirty talk and well-known dancing. Gatlif also wrote the screenplay, which goes into great detail
showing the life and culture, while avoiding the clichés and stereotypes like
hardly any film has before. That is nice,
but aside from that, it is not a deep mediation on the life and that could be
done without harsh criticism. With that
said, it does consider some of the same questions of emptiness some films about
the counterculture of the 1970s did, and that alone makes for an interesting
comparison.
The anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image has some good
color, but seems to have image phasing and ghosting from being a PAL
transfer. If you can tolerate that, you
will enjoy this transfer otherwise. The
Dolby Digital 2.0 French/Romany Stereo film was a Dolby Digital theatrical
release of some kind and has just enough Pro Logic surrounds to make that an
option. The only extras are five
trailers, for New Yorker product, including one for this film.
- Nicholas Sheffo
