The idea behind Heddy Honigman's documentary is simple: take a roving camera down into the Paris Metro and record the buskers to illustrate the variety of musical styles on display. The reality is far more extraordinary. For what emerges is a rich and complex portrait of a musical cosmopolis wherein artists and performers from all over the globe exist in a fragile community to liberate themselves from the tyrannies of totalitarian regimes, ethnic cleansing and civil wars.
Far from just observing, Honigman enters the homes of many of her subjects, where she witnesses hair-raising tales of torture and exile, enforced immigration and desertion - stories enlightened by the spirit of hope, survival and, occasionally, romance.
Shot in black and white in guerilla fashion - without permission to film on the Metro the movie crew are, like the musicians, frequently asked to move on by hatchet-faced security guards - this captures every aspect of street music, from the players to the audience. Iranians, Algerians, Armenians, Venezuelan, Colombians, Africans, Vietnamese - all are represented with a generosity of spirit that flows from the subjects themselves, the film-makers and the music.
Shown as part of the Barbican Screen's Paris sur Scène film season from tomorrow until 29 June.
The Underground Orchestra (Het Ondergrondse Orkest)
Cert: certPG
