Dzi Croquettes

Title : Dzi Croquettes

Director : Raphael Alvarez, Tatiana Issa

Cast : Norma Bengell, Maria Zilda Bethlem, Liza Minelli

Genre : Documentary

Special notes : Keep an open mind

            Cultural revolution, the only form of unbloody revolution. This pretty much sums up  the whole idea of the documentary. It’s about the “Dzi Croquettes”, a legendary dance and theater group, and their story as they redefine the way people view everything.

            In the beginning we see Brazil as it was during the ’70s dictatorship. We see a dance group that is most peculiar. This just doesn’t add up. This strong contrast practically initiates the documentary setting up the mood one needs to follow it.

            Dzi Croquettes is a dance and theater group who managed to revolutionize the gay movement through their art. A group of 13 men, they shared the same view as their leader, Lenny: not ladies, not gentlemen, just people. Their story is told by the remaining members and by celebrities who admired them. This is not a short list, as they were admired by legends such as : Mick Jagger, Jeanne Moreau, Omar Sharif, Liza Minnelli. This stands as proof to their greatness.

            A beautiful experience as the director makes their story, from their birth as a group until the present, known to us. Though it is germane to the Brazilians we still can draw some conclusions about what they meant and what they still mean to the entire world.

            In an unfathomable way, the fact that the remaining Dzi Croquettes crew accepted to appear and to retell their memories in this documentary makes it funny and sad at the same time.

An unparalleled approach to a dance crew, to understand this documentary, one should skip tunnel vision and open his mind to something new.

            Watching this documentary through Tatiana Issa’s lens, the daughter of a man who worked closely with the Dzi Croquettes group, is something unique. Her father worked only 8 years (1970-1978) with them and did not have a crucial role. I like the idea that even if he wasn’t a vital part of the group his daughter was greatly influenced by them.  

            As a documentary is exactly opposite “Baraka” but, as in all good productions, in the end there is only “magnum opus”.

A beautiful documentary, an incestuous one.

 

“- How can you date a gay man ?

  - First comes his mind, then comes everything else. “

            We were expecting you …

            Special thanks to : http://www.ro-iff.ro/