''Mondo'' is a 1995 French

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

written and directed by

Tony Gatlif Tony Gatlif (born as Michel Dahmani on 10 September 1948 in Algiers) is a French film director of Romani ethnicity who also works as a screenwriter, composer, actor, and producer. Personal Gatlif was born in Algeria of Pied noir ancestry. Af ...

based upon the short story by

J. M. G. Le Clézio Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clézio (; 13 April 1940), usually identified as J. M. G. Le Clézio, of French and Mauritian nationality, is a writer and professor. The author of over forty works, he was awarded the 1963 Prix Renaudot for his novel '' Le ...

. The film debuted at the Unifrance French Film Festival in Japan 1995, and premiered in France April 17, 1996.

Background

The film's star, Ovidiu Balan, was 11 when the film was shot. He is a Romanian Gypsy who was taken under the director's wing with help of the French government Gatlif created the film as a work on the themes of the "restless and free" gypsy, in contrast to the notion of settlements proposed for

Sinti The Sinti (also ''Sinta'' or ''Sinte''; masc. sing. ''Sinto''; fem. sing. ''Sintesa'') are a subgroup of Romani people mostly found in Germany and Central Europe that number around 200,000 people. They were traditionally itinerant, but today o ...

and

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...

populations in the EU. Unlike similar films about

street children Street children are poor or homeless children who live on the streets of a city, town, or village. Homeless youth are often called street kids or street child; the definition of street children is contested, but many practitioners and policym ...

, such as

Salaam Bombay ''Salaam Bombay!'' is a 1988 Indian Hindi-language drama film, directed, co-written and co-produced by Mira Nair. The screenwriter was Nair's creative collaborator Sooni Taraporevala. This was the first feature film directed by Nair. The film ...

Pixote ''Pixote: a Lei do Mais Fraco'' (, lit. "Pixote (small child): The Law of the Weakest") is a 1980 Brazilian crime drama film directed by Héctor Babenco. The screenplay was written by Babenco and Jorge Durán, based on the book ''A Infância dos M ...

, this film was intended as a fairy tale of sorts of a mythical spirit who touches the lives of outcast people in a society filled with prejudice against the

gypsies The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...

Synopsis

The movie follows an orphan boy surviving in

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...

through the kindness of strangers and his own ingenuity. One day Mondo (Ovidiu Balan) appears on the streets of Nice. He has no family, no possessions, no schooling, but shares a brilliant smile and good spirit. Being more at home in the city's gardens, fields, and seashore, the bustle of the city seems to overwhelm him. He has good survival instincts, avoiding police and threatening adults in his search for a family.

Cast

* Ovidiu Balan as Mondo *

Philippe Petit Philippe Petit (; born 13 August 1949) is a French high-wire artist who gained fame for his unauthorized high-wire walks between the towers of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris in 1971 and of Sydney Harbour Bridge in 1973, as well as between the Twi ...

as The Magician * Pierrette Fesch as Thi Chin * Jerry Smith as Dadi * Schahla Aalam as The Magician's Friend * Maurice Maurin as Giordan the fisherman * Catherine Brun as Church Soloist * Ange Gobbi as The Postman * Jean Ferrier as The Chief of Police * Marcel Lemuet as The Birdman * Nadia Cutaia as The Baker Woman * Pierre Klouman as The Popcorn Man

Recognition

Awards and nominations

* 1998, Adult's Jury Award Certificate of Merit for 'Feature Film and Video' at

Chicago International Children's Film Festival In 1983, Facets Multi-Media founded the Chicago International Children's Film Festival (CICFF), the first competitive festival of films for children in the U.S. The impetus for the Festival came from a need to introduce new, culturally diverse fil ...

Reception

Gatlif's earlier film ''

Latcho Drom ''Latcho Drom'' ("safe journey") is a 1993 French film directed and written by Tony Gatlif. The movie is about the Romani people's journey from north-west India to Spain, consisting primarily of music. The film was screened in the Un Certain Reg ...

'' presented a romantic portrait of Gypsy music and culture. He brings the same sensibility to this lyrical ''Mondo'', a sad-eyed image of the universal outsider, France's most unwanted. ''Mondo'' is described to be visually reminding one of those rare days when the world used to sparkle as though it were brand new, set in the streets and docks of the French port city of Nice.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mondo (Film) 1995 films 1990s French-language films French documentary films Films directed by Tony Gatlif Romani films 1990s French films