Manoushe

1998 / PG-13 / 73 min

In the darkness of a rural night, a gypsy clan gathers to mourn thier brloved patriarch's in a ritual celebrated through music and dance. As the ritual unfolds, the patriarch's aged widow reminisces , in a dreamlike flashback about the beginings of thier adventurous romance. One of the scenes describes the lovers, chased by her raving mad father, into an enchanting forest inhabited by good gnomes and evi goblins. After much trimulation and danger-and with the help of good gnomes- the young lovers manage to escape and leave the forest. With a tapestry of memories MANOUSHE is a kaleidoscope packed with imaginary gleefully hijacked from sources like the bothers grimm, midevil european forest legends, magical realism, carnival camp, peyote hallucinations and even voodoo. It's a never ending "love" story wrapped in a tolkienesgue landscape.