Mélodie tzigane

"ZIGEUNERWEISEN is the best among the trinity, for being a more ludic and freewheeling vehicle that is almost unperturbed by affective force, and its psychic elements are more pellucid (a young daughter communicates with her dead father through dreams, versus the elusive suicidal pact in KAGERO-ZA), plus the inclusion of a triad of blind mendicant minstrels, chanting ribald ditties while the hierarchy of their sex preference goes through an irreverent modulation."

read my full review on my blog: cinema omnivore, thanks!

The film follows the relationship between two men in early middle age. One is a prim university professor and the other is some sort of "wild man" masculine archetype.

Like in Rouroni Kenshin, the time period for this film is one where the modern Japan and the traditional Japan were clashing, at least in fashion choices. The professor dresses in formal European attire, while the wild man is invariable seen in an ominous black kimono.

Yet the archetypes they represent are universal, not specifically Japanese. The professor, unemotional and flabberghasted into silence at the sight of anything out of the ordinary, is reserved and inhibited, representing civilization. The wild man goes about the world following his whims, getting involved sexually with a bevy of women and doing anything he can to satiate his curiosity. In conversation he is open, apparently always expressing whatever emotion-tinged crazy ideas come into his mind and running with them. Yet are they really so crazy? We see much of the unspoken thoughts that reside in all of our minds in his dialogues. He simply does not have the filter to keep them back.

It's too surreal to effectively convey its message, if indeed it has any message at all, but it's effective at creating a certain ambiance. Although the professor doesn't show himself to be very moved, we are enthralled by the wild man's antics that leave a trail of broken hearts and destruction in their wake. Whether he's manhandling women, speaking glibly about death, or simply sitting there in his striking black cape and eyepatch, we are always interested in discovering what outrageous thing he will do next.

Honourable Mentions: The Great Santini (1979). Robert Duvall tried to embody the quintessential male in his ageing marine in this film, but it came up short. Santini is rough and wild in his own way, but he lacks the mystique and outlandish outrageousness of Nagasako, still very much trapped in convention and thus not as interesting.

I'm a huge Suzuki fan, but this was one I had never got a chance to see. Well I finally did and its surreal. I guess all his films are that way, but this one was really out there for me. Really beautiful and interesting all at the same time. He's the master so I just love watching whatever he puts out. If you're a Suzuki fan, watch for sure. If not then it may be too much for you.

I understand 1980s japan liked it.

I understand most people on here like it 10/10 and such.

I dont really care about why it's a German name or any of the factiods on the Wikipedia page.

I enjoyed it as an experience, but the story was kinda vague. If you're gonna watch this appreciate it as you would a painting. But don't watch this for the story.

Suzuki is generally known for his outrageous, eye-popping imagery. I think his films actually contain a lot of depth and are great besides that imagery, but I know it's the visuals that bring him his fame. This film, independently produced after a long hiatus from film-making, is a different kind of Suzuki. A VERY different Suzuki. Zigeunerweisen, named after a musical composition that plays a couple of times during the film and a record of which plays an important part of the plot, is a rather slowly paced art film, a very long one at that, with an almost European feeling. There are a few striking images in its two and a half hours (most notably a woman licking a man's eyeball), but it isn't the phantasmagoria of Suzuki's earlier films, or his later films. The dialogue is often weird and poetic. My favorite line was "You caress me as if sucking my very bones." The film takes place during the Taisho period, which occurred after the Meiji Restoration during the 20s and 30s. It is a period marked by further Westernization and a loss of traditional values (I might be wrong, but I think Oshima's In the Realm of the Senses is set during the same period). The story involves two friends, a professor and a vagabond, and their relationships with their wives, as well as a geisha they once met on a vacation. There isn't too much story, per se. The vagabond marries a woman who looks identical to the geisha, but doesn't stay faithful, or even at home. The film is mostly told from the point of view of the professor (played by Toshiya Fujita, the director of Lady Snowblood). Like I said, the film is very deliberately paced. It was hard to stay interested at times. But the movie moves toward a mysterious and haunting finale. I don't think I get it, but I found the whole film intriguing, at least. Not my favorite Suzuki by a long shot, but maybe I'll understand it better on a subsequent viewing (which probably won't happen for a long while).