Gadjo dilo

Gadjo Dilo stroked me in a most unconventional way. I saw it at a friend without knowing or expecting what it will be about. Very realistic and sincere, with raw images and beautiful shots, it simply shook me up. The way gypsies are presented is a true insight of their culture and way of living. The acting, done by amateurs at most, is flawless, especially by Izidor who delivers perfectly. Even if the story is hardly present, the movie doesn't need one as it slowly goesdeep with drama, comedy, ethnicity and music. Overall Gadjo Dilo (free translation Crazy Dude) is an unexpected gem from Tony Gatlif that is different from everything I've seen. Misto!

I was truly captivated by this seductive journey into the well-insulated lives of the gypsies. It takes a non-judgmental view and refrains from clichés. The film takes on a somewhat cinema variete approach and uses many non-professional actors for the supporting roles. This approach was successful and didn't distract from film's story. The film follows a young Frenchman on a quest to find a gypsy singer on an audio tape he has. I was able to catch it late one night on cable and have not been able to find it in any video store for rent. This movie really needs a DVD release so we can get it from Netflix. Someone should pick this one up for release.

I would just like to say a few words about the comment of bplesa, which is more or less correct, but, in my opinion, needs some explaining regarding the title of the movie. I doubt that "crazy romanian" would be a correct translation since the title most probably refers to the french guy which, obviously, is not romanian. It could be "extended" to "crazy stranger" since he is a stranger, but i think the only translation that can be considered correct is "Crazy Guy". Gadjo and Dilo, the two words from the title, are used in romanian slang, as "gagiu", respectively "diliu", and of course were adopted from Romani (the language of the gypsies). There meaning is: gagiu=guy, diliu=crazy, so... I think that says it all.

"Gadjo Dilo" shows the trip of a young man in search of a voice that he fell in love with. Stéphane (Roman Duris) is a musicologist that just follows his guts, his instinct, to find the mysterious singer Nora Luca in Romania. He follows a passionate and realistic journey that teaches himself the gypsy way of being. Quite different from the Kusturica approach, Tony Gatlif's music is more intimate of the true gypsy soul and enables us to feel and understand it. With this "musical anthropological" view a stunning portrait of this culture is made, with all it's roughness and spontaneity. As a viewer i grew as a person with this movie, some preconceptions were broken and a great admiration was born for the Romanian nomads.

I believe that "Gadjo Dilo" is a true approach to the gypsy way of being, a music that will inspire your future steps.

In life you do come across with little gems of movies. Gadjo dilo represents that, tenderness, simplistic and genuine approach to the soul of the gypsy people. Hard not to be moved by movies like this that essentially portray so beautifully a piece of a persons life. The music is great, a major discovery in my life and although seen it years ago i still treasure it as one of the reasons why i enjoy watching movies. Most of the actors of the movie did not have formal training and they manage to pull it together in a way that accomplished ones would have real trouble to do so. One of those movies that reinstate your faith in the homelessness of the good quality cinema NOT TO BE MISSED