Swing (2002)

Swing is a French film by Tony Gatlif, released in 2002.

In a suburb of Strasbourg, Alsace, France, ten-year-old boy, Max, spends his summer vacation with his grandmother. He hears Manouche gypsy Romani music being played in a local bar, and loves it. He goes to visit the gypsies in search of a guitar, where he meets a young Romani tomboy, 'Swing'. She introduces Max to her gypsy community who live in caravans and down-at-heel public housing. Over several days, Max is taken into the community to witness Romani lifestyle, traditions, knowledge of plants, and particularly their Manouche music. Max is particularly fascinated by Miraldo, the Romani guitarist he first heard in the bar, and asks to take guitar lessons with him (Miraldo is played by one of the greatest guitarists of gypsy jazz, Tchavolo Schmitt).

Max and Swing develop a close bond, set to many strong and catchy musical moments (some featuring the music of Django Reinhardt). Max hears from a chainsmoking grandmother (played by Helene Mershtein) how she and one other child were the sole survivors of a group or Romani interred and shot during the Second World War. The mixed Algerian/Romany heritage of the Director is given homage by featuring a musical jam session with Miraldo and Khalid, played by Abdellatif Chaarani.

The film comes to a climax as Max finally learns to play a gypsy tune during his lesson, but just as we surmise Miraldo has succeeded in teaching him, he suffers a heart attack outside his caravan and dies. Following Romany tradition, Miraldo's caravan and personal effects are burned. Max's holiday comes to an end, and Max and Swing part company with sadness. The implication is that Max's Gadjo status (a Romani term designating those who are not of that ethnic group) is a gulf between them.

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