Time of the Gypsies

But perhaps the best part of the movie is its music--Goran Bregovich is unbelievable. Even if all of my above comments are ignored, the soundtrack alone is worth watching teh entire movie.


Magic, Life, Art, Beauty, Joy, Tragedy, Intelligent, Simple   August 3, 1999
25 out of 29 found this review helpful

This movie is for those who are interested in discovering the reason why film making, pictures, stories and storytelling, not to mention other cultures and folk music...and so many other aspects of life...well...this is a movie for those who want to see why all these things are the incredible gifts of life that we all share. This is the film that tells us why life and how life can be such an incredible experience.

You must be very careful reading Matlin's review. It is the review of a man whose perception of the world and film making have not been formed by the authentic experience of life. His reviews serve a larger machine...just as some of the young children and women work for Ahmed (a character in this movie) in the same way as Maitlin does his thing in his reivew. Be careful. He's a man on a time schedule. A man who might be made too uncomfortable by this film because it is so much larger than the kinds of movies we get from Hollywood and the rest of the infotainment telesector disciples.

This is a movie for anyone who is alive. A movie for anyone who, whether they like to watch the Simpsons, or whether they like to read Dante, are very aware of themselves as living breathing organisms in the midst of their involvement in such activities.

It is a gift. The director is a gift. I've seen three of his movies and it's amazing to see a man ascend to heights of achievement. I'm so glad I watched this movie.

I liked this movie because it shows life and people different than me...but with whom I can identify on an emotional and intellectual level. It has great music. It has documentary qualities that root in in reality...so that the director can take me out on the sea of his inspiration. It is colorful. Funny. Joyful. There are weddings, and bar scenes, and car scenes and ordinary imperfect reality scenes that are presented in a extraordinary way.


Still haunting after 5 years of living in the oblivion   January 4, 2000
Harry (Philly)
22 out of 26 found this review helpful

I want to thank my ex-girlfriend for introducing me this film that is simply beyond words.

I usually do not enjoy watching subtitled movies, but this one transcends even my insurmountable laziness.

Be careful: this one will haunt you for the rest of your life.

And ignore Maltin, who appears to have lost in the world of tightly managed Hollywood flicks. Don't get me wrong; I do enjoy Hollywood movies. Usually, I go for silly comedies over supposedly arty films.

But I am not blind.


Great film, great music, and a great director.   July 27, 2003
Luz Rodriguez (Buenos Aires, Argentina)
19 out of 21 found this review helpful

I decided to make, instead of the review, a comment of the film:
I couldn't believe what I was watching at the first 10 minutes. I didn't know if I had to laught, cry or just stare at the tv.
The history of the characters is amazing. One by one envolves you and introduce you to their owne history.
The music is unbelievable, is perfect.
El film por completo es exelente.
Forgive me for the grammar mistakes.


Kusturica is a profound visual poet and a cinematic genius.   December 27, 1998
apapazog@mail.slc.edu Adelaide Papazoglou (USA)
14 out of 15 found this review helpful

I have nothing more to add about TIME OF THE GYPSIES. Everything you need to know about its contents is adequately described in the other reviews. This review is about the director, Emir Kusturica and his films as a whole, all of which are remarkable.

I don't want to say too much, because it is almost sinful to recommend something so exquisite that I fear I will not do it justice. But I will try. Anyone who hasn't seen every one of Emir Kusturica's masterpieces is missing out on the most remarkable creations since the conception of the moving image. I am at a loss for words when it comes to describing what exactly it is that Kusturica does, but I will do my best to give you a glimpse: He combines the surreal with the absurd, to create a result more beautiful and more real than anything I have ever before experienced. He gives you a glimpse of eternity. He gives your life those moments of unpalpability, that remind you that there still is something magical and mystical, that the world is not as calculated and banal as you may once have thought. I would also like to express my utter disgust to whoever is at fault for the delay of the release in the US of Kusturica's masterpiece of masterpieces, UNDERGROUND which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes in 1995. It is a film by a Yugoslavian about the loss of Yugoslavia, and as any work of art built on personal experience, the creator's passions have been torn apart by idiotic critics because of the film's supposed political innuendos. The New Yorker, among other periodicals in the US was first in line to spew its bulls**t american quips all over its critique of the film. I will stop here before this entire review is censored for its explicitness. To the best of my knowledge UNDERGROUND is being released in the US by New Yorker Films on February 9th. Don't miss this film...you have too much to lose.