The threads of the plot are such that the viewer is challenged to gather them. Caco (Antonio Canales), the prosperous clubowner patriarch of an Andalusian gypsy clan, is spiritually drained at a time when the tensions in a generations-old clash with a rival family, the Caravacas, are at their highest. Through circumstances unexplained, Caco has recently lost a young daughter, and his grief is obsessive, as manifested in the massive shrine he has built to her upon his estate.
Caco compensates through lavishing paternal affection on his teenaged nephew Diego (Orestes Villasan Rodriguez), a good-natured kid with cerebral palsy, who enjoys his uncle's indulgences of throwing frequent parties with his favorite flamenco acts booked as the entertainment. As it turns out, Diego's father is in hiding in Morocco after having killed one of the Caravacas, and the word on the street is that Diego will soon be the victim of retribution. Weary of a conflict that has dictated the course of his entire life, Caco confronts the improbable task of brokering a truce to the unending feud.
That's pretty much it for the breadth and depth of the plot. Vengo's singular verve comes of necessity from its many performance sequences, where the unvarnished play and dance of flamenco and sufi notables like Tomatito, La Caita, Gritos de Guerra, Remedios Silva Pisa, Sheikh Ahmad al Tuni and La Paquera de Jerez light up the screen. Gatlif leaves it for these pulsating festival set pieces to bring across the spontaneity and passion of the Romani culture, and the viewer's willingness to give oneself over to the music will dictate for that viewer whether Vengo works as a film.
The preeminent flamenco dancer Canales turned in a charismatic performance as the conflicted Caco; however, Gatlif, in a choice that confounded flamenco aficionados, required next to no footwork from Canales in the role. Rodriguez is natural, effective, and enjoyable. The remaining players-the extended families and soldiers of the warring clans-don't have much opportunity to do more than sketch out their characterizations.
Home Vision did superior work in their mastering of the video and audio, lending Vengo's score the requisite vibrancy; the film is presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, with an option for Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround. The disc's extra features include the 25-minute short subject Los Almedros-Plaza Nueva (2000), a diverting tale of a bus route where the passengers burst into performance. There are also interviews with Canales and with Antonio Dechent, who portrays Caco's foremost lieutenant, regarding how they came to the project. Rounding out the features are a Gatlif filmography and brief bio, as well as trailers for Vengo and Gatlif's latest, Swing (2002). The liner notes include an essay on flamenco's origins authored by Pedro Cortes.
For more information about Vengo, visit Home Vision Entertainment. To order Vengo, go to TCM Shopping.
by Jay Steinberg
