AllMovie

Director Johannes Flütsch's ethnic documentary is on the life, customs, and hardships of the Cesas, one Romany (gypsy) family of four as they move - or are forced to move - from place to place in Switzerland. Flütsch shows that the family is loving and content with their nomadic life - in fact, they are quick to anger if any government tries to regulate them. But at the same time, they barely keep the wolf from the door - they live by sharpening knives and scissors, and by stealing food when they can. Distrusted by the settled communities, when the family camps in the woods they are automatically watched by the police. The advantage of Flütsch's approach in this documentary is a close-up view of actual Romany life, though a dash of political, historical, and cultural background would give the viewer a needed context.