The Roma do not exist : the Roma as an object of cinematic representation and the question of authenticity
Part of : Γράμμα : περιοδικό θεωρίας και κριτικής ; Vol.14, No.1, 2006, pages 183-197
Issue:
Pages:
183-197
Section Title:
The object of art 2 - Film and painting
Author:
Abstract:
Representations of the Roma are ubiquitous in the history of Balkan cinema. These films have tended to be by non-Roma directors, with the Roma as the object of representation. Consequently, the critical reception of the films has focused on the issue of verisimilitude. In recent scholarship critics have utilized the psychoanalytic concept of "projective identification" to account for the persistent interest in Gypsy culture and life. In this paper I draw on an alternative tradition of Lacanian psychoanalysis to argue that Tony Gatlif's Gadjo dilo, rather than presenting an authentic picture of Roma culture, foregrounds the impossibility of representation ever truthfully capturing the object. Deploying the Lacanian concepts of das Ding and "The Woman does not exist," the paper demonstrates how Gatlif problématisés the very notion of the Roma as a homogenized culture and identity.
Subject (LC):
Notes:
Περιέχει φιλμογραφία και βιβλιογραφία
