Vengo [DVD]

Tony Gatlif revisits gypsy life in “Vengo” and once again reveals its passion, splendour, and poetry. Set in the plains of Andalucia, “Vengo” centres on Caco (Antonio Canales), a charismatic, important figure in the local community, who mourns the recent death of his daughter, Pepa. Caco transfers his protective love onto his nephew, Diego (Orestes Villasan Rodriguez), whose life is under threat because his father has murdered a member of the Caravacas, a neighbouring gypsy family. “Vengo” retells the age-old tale of vengeance and rivalry in the local village, infusing it with immense poetry and life. Like “Latcho drom” and “The Crazy stranger”, “Vengo” shows that music is a defining aspect of gypsy life. It is an expression of their passion and connection to all things sensual, emotional, rhythmic and physical. What Gatlif achieves with “Vengo” is an operatic portrait of local gypsy culture that is at once uplifting and liberating for its musical qualities and insightful and rewarding for its observation of cultural traditions. In Spanish with English subtitles.