Eugene Hutz Movies
A young man takes a strange and unexpectedly funny journey in search of a family heroine he's never known in this screen adaptation of the novel by Jonathan Safran Foer. Jonathan (Elijah Wood) is a lifelong collector of any and all objects pertaining to his family, and he has become obsessed with a woman he's never met. The woman saved the life of his grandfather during World War II, when the Ukrainian town where he was born was destroyed by Nazi troops. Wanting to know more about the woman, Jonathan flies to the Ukraine, where with the help of a hip-hop obsessed, gold-toothed tour guide and translator named Alex (Eugene Hütz), Alex's grandfather (a chauffeur who has claimed to be blind since his wife's death, played by Boris Leskin), and a dog named Sammy Davis Junior Junior, Jonathan searches for the meaning of the present that lies buried in the past, unexpectedly shedding the same such light on the lives of those around him. Everything Is Illuminated was the first directorial assignment for acclaimed actor Liev Schreiber. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elijah Wood, Eugene Hutz, (more)
Pavla Fleisher was on a road trip through Eastern Europe when she first met Gogol Bordello front man Eugene Hutz, and it didn't take long for her to fall head over heels in love with the Gypsy punk vocalist. Later, in order to get to know him better, Fleisher decided to make a documentary in which the pair would set out for a road trip across the Ukraine - Hutz's home country. But while Fleisher has taken the trip on hopes of rekindling a fleeting romance, Hutz is out to discover his roots and draw inspiration from the culture he so stridently tries to preserve. So how is it that two people who are stuck in the same car together can be on such divergent paths, and what happens when each one is so devoted to their own journey that they become blind to everything else around them? ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pavla Fleischer, Eugene Hutz, (more)
- 2008
- NR
Fusing the instrumental approach of Eastern European gypsy music with the energy and attitude of punk rock, Gogol Bordello is one of the most unusual success stories of pop music in the new millennium, and Eugene Hutz hardly has the background of a typical rock frontman. Born near Kiev in 1972, Hutz and his family fled the Ukraine after the disaster at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in 1986, and they made their way through Eastern Europe as refugees before coming to America in 1990. After playing with local bands in Vermont, Hutz relocated to New York City in 1997. While working as a DJ at downtown clubs, he began meeting fellow expatriate musicians, and in 1999 Gogol Bordello was formed. Gogol Bordello's frantic live shows earned the band a loyal following both at home and on the road, and their third album, 2005's Gypsy Punks: Underdog World Strike became a major independent success. Filmmaker Margarita Jimeno followed the band on the road for several months, and the result was Gogol Bordello Non-Stop, a documentary which looks at the group's colorful history and rigorous schedule as well as offering a look at the high-energy live show that's made them famous. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
After more than two decades as one of the world's most recognizable stars, Madonna steps behind the camera for the first time with this comedy drama about a handful of bohemians struggling to make a name for themselves in London, which she both wrote and directed. A.K. (Eugene Hutz) is a Ukrainian émigré and struggling musician who fronts a band blending gypsy music with punk rock. Still coming to terms with a childhood pock-marked by abuse, A.K. believes that one has to confront the seamy side of life to find enlightenment, and with this in mind he supports himself by torturing masochists for money while dressed in military gear. Living in the same decaying apartment block as A.K. is Holly (Holly Weston), a gifted dancer who dreams of becoming a ballet star, though now she's forced to degrade herself as a stripper at a "gentleman's nightclub." A.K. is enamored of Holly, but can't work up the nerve to make a move. Elsewhere in the building, Juliette (Vicky McClure) wants to help children in the Third World, but is biding her time working at a pharmacy, where she swipes medicine for charity when she isn't pocketing recreational material for herself, and Professor Flynn (Richard E. Grant) is a blind poet who is surrounded by a personal library of books he can no longer read. Filth and Wisdom also features several performances by Gogol Bordello, the band Eugene Hutz leads in real life; the film received its world premiere at the 2008 Berlin Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eugene Hutz, Holly Weston, (more)
