Japan Synopsis
In a suburb of Strasbourg, Alsace, France, ten year old boy, Max, spends his summer vacation with his grandmother. He hears Manouche gypsy Romani music being played in a local bar, and loves it. He goes to visit the gypsies in search of a guitar, where he meets a young Romani tomboy, 'Swing'. She introduces Max to her gypsy community who live in caravans and down-at-heel public housing. Over several days, Max is taken into the community to witness Romani lifestyle, traditions, knowledge of plants, and particularly their Manouche music. Max is particularly fascinated by Miraldo, the Romani guitarist he first heard in the bar, and asks to take guitar lessons with him (Miraldo is played by one of the greatest guitarists of gypsy jazz, Tchavolo Schmitt).
The 2001–2003 Japan Window
247 Japan films released in this three-year window, ranked here by audience rating. Swing sits at position #117.
The 2000s Japan Landscape
Catalog density by release year in the 2000s. Highlighted year (yellow) is when Swing premiered. 1020 total titles in this decade from Japan.
Reception Benchmarks
Ranked #2,419 of 4,579 Japan films indexed here (47th percentile by TMDB audience score).
Among Japan Comedy productions specifically: #826 of 1,411 (top 59%).
Production Details
| Primary Country | Japan |
|---|---|
| All Production Countries | France, Japan |
| Original Language | Fr |
| Production Companies | Princes Films |
| Runtime | 1h 30m |
| Release Date | March 20, 2002 |
| IMDb | tt0307538 |