And the Violins Stopped Playing 1988

Dymitr Mirga, Horst Buchholz, a renowned Romani violinist, performs for German troops in a restaurant in 1941 Warsaw. The officers applaud the music and assure him that the ongoing removal of the region’s Jews has nothing to do with the Romani because they are “Aryan” like the Germans. When a warning from an escapee reaches his family, Dymitr decides to flee by train to Brest-Litovsk, taking his kin with him as they join a band of Romani on the outskirts of the city.

The local German commander visits the camp and informs the Romani that he is giving them the houses where the Jews who have been “re-located” lived. Dymitr instantly sees the grim truth behind this euphemism and urges the head of the Romani community to lead an evacuation into Hungary, then still an independent country. The leader resigns, and the council ultimately transfers the leadership to Dymitr Mirga, entrusting him with the perilous task ahead.

The journey binds together a complex web of loyalties and heartache. The betrothal of the former leader’s son to Zoya Natkin, a charismatic Romani woman, is ultimately rewritten when Zoya chooses to marry Dymitr’s son, Roman, [Piotr Polk]. On the road to safety, some Romani depart from the main group, attempting to blend in by posing as merchants, while others fall behind or are killed by the Nazi forces. In a grim but resourceful move, the group sells their jewels to buy horses from another Romani community, speeding their advance even as lives are lost. The kindness of strangers shines through as communities give the departed a burial and neighbors pause to mourn the fallen.

With dwindling numbers, Dymitr reaches Hungary after a harrowing march, bringing with him his wife Wala Mirga, [Didi Ramati], his son Roman, and Roman’s wife Zoya, along with Zoya’s family and the son of the former leader who had been killed by the Nazis. Yet all of Dymitr’s arduous planning seems in vain when the Nazis topple the Hungarian government in 1944, fracturing whatever hope remained for safe passage.

The war’s brutality intensifies at Auschwitz, where the infamous Dr Mengele, [Marcin Troński], conducts cruel medical experiments on prisoners. Before their arrival, Dymitr’s daughter escapes through a cattle-truck window, and at the camp, Dymitr is forced to perform for the guards while his son Roman enjoys limited privileges as a translator. The turning point comes when Roman’s wife Zoya dies, prompting Roman to contemplate escape. He seeks out a friend and former rival, and together they plan to break free. The plan succeeds, and the two make contact with Roman’s younger sister, Mikita, portrayed by [Zitto Kazann].

As the war ends, three Romani carriages set off toward the horizon, carrying what remains of the family and their allies. The narrator closes with a stark observation about the broader fate of the Romani people: the Gypsy nation has yet to receive any compensation. Throughout this heartbreaking odyssey, the resilience of love, family, and communal solidarity threads through the grim realities of betrayal, violence, and survival.