Eugene Hutz and his New York based Gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello are currently just about the coolest band around, with Kerrang magazine describing Hutz as one of the great rock frontmen. Ever and NME placing him on their Cool List. After stealing the show at Live Earth when Eugene and fellow band member Sergey were invited by Madonna to perform a very special rendition of her No.1 hit, ‘La Isla Bonita’ mixed with the traditional Romany song, ‘Lela Pala Tute’ a live staple for Gogol Bordello, and performed in the Romany language, The Independent commented that the performance had captured the global span of the event in a way that no one else had managed.Now, Hutz is the star of the documentary The Pied Piper Of Hutzovina, a film that follows the musician on a road trip around his home country Ukraine and numerous other parts of Eastern Europe, on a journey to rediscover his musical roots and find inspiration in the Gypsy culture he is determined to preserve. Hutz’s magnetic personality and ability to attract followers wherever he goes in the world is reflected in the film’s rather apt title, with Eugene very much embodying the role of a Pied Piper.The film connects the dots, joining different aspects of Gypsy culture in Hungary, Ukraine, Russia and Siberia, from its manifestations in elite society, all the way down to the musicians and activists in the ghetto. Including a visit to a run-down Gypsy camp in Ukrainian Zarkarpatia, ridden with tuberculosis and fleas, and musicians who rip Eugene’s skills and heart apart with a single note on a borrowed guitar; a trip to Serbia to meet Eugene’s musical hero Sasha Kolpakov; a return to the Kiev neighbourhood where Eugene grew up and a meeting with the disapproving head of the Kiev Gypsy TheatreIn the summer of 2004, on a car journey in Eastern Europe, filmmaker Pavla Fleischer met and fell under the spell of Eugene Hutz, lead singer of New York's Gypsy Punk band Gogol Bordello.
The Pied Piper of Hutzovina follows Eugene and Pavla on their subsequent road trip through Eugene's home country, Ukraine. It is the story of two people travelling together on two very different courses. She hopes to recapture the spirit of their first encounter; he is seeking musical inspiration from the gypsy culture he is determined to preserve.
The journey tests their relationship and challenges their perceptions of the music they both love.