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Documentary / Hippie / Psychedelic

last update: 16.04.2011
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• Last Hipie Standing Goa is not a place – Goa is a State of Mind is a re-issued cult documentary by Marcus Robbin who went in search of the ‘last hippie in Goa’ and he manages to find some interesting traces of that culture which began in late sixties and late seventies when the western hippie movement was dying out through commercialisation. Marcus very cleverly unfolds the hippie scene through a series of interviews as well as some great original super 8 footage from the seventies. What he also tackles is peoples perception of hippies in Goa as well as highlighting the fact that there is a cultural heritage that is still evolving. The film starts with the modern day, the trance music scene that thrives in Goa, a far cry from the guitars and flutes of the first hippie communities on the beaches of Anjuna. The two cultures are linked even if the 170bpm music does not sound the same there is the undercurrent of escape and an alternative lifestyle. Locals offer their mystified responses to the music yet young people still arrive in their droves for the popular full moon parties. The film highlight is the reurn to the seventies through the use of some amazing footage that has never been seen before. The film focuses around three individuals: Cleo Odzer: A New Yorker who came to Goa in the seventies. She left in the 80′s due to drug problems but returned 20 years later. The film is dedicated to her memory as she passed away in 2001. Swami William: A very fascinating man who was one of the orginal seekers from San Francisco. He lives in a Himilayan mountain village and gives an insight into the influence of hinduism on the hippie culture. Goa Gil: Another intersting man who is a top trance DJ who also arrived from San Francisco in the seventies. You can’t help but like the man as there is nothing not to like about him in the documentary. Whilst the documentary is a great insight there is an underlying purpose to it which becomes evident during the interview with the Chief Minister of Goa who states that they don’t want hippies in Goa as they don’t spend any money. They want rich tourists who will inject money into ‘the system’. There is a sad irony to this but also a heightened desire which drives Marcus Robbin’s vision of a global village in Goa. He has already begun work on a documentary sequel to this which is being financed by donations. And the last hippies? Yes, they are still there, some arrived and disappeared into Indian society as Sadhus. Others left and returned like Cleo. Whilst they lived in a sepearate reality and saw the sun and moon differently to how others may see them there is something very endearing about those first communal societies. They lived simple lives and did not accumulate wealth and numerous possessions. There were very few dwellings in Anjuna so people built their own huts or slept under trees…they ran flea markets to exchange goods that they needed such as clothes etc. The documentary does paint a very flowery picture, but it also highlights how that culture has evolved and thrived in the face of growing commercialism. Looking forward to the sequel! ~Reviewed by Alex for Folk Radio UK (Oct 2011)

• C'erano una volta gli Hippies? No, ci sono ancora, non so in quanti abbiano avuto la fortuna o il piacere di visionare il documentario "Last Hippie Standing" diretto da Marcus Robbin, di sicuro vi capitasse fra le mani dategli un'occhiata. Perché vi direte voi? Semplicemente per il fatto che quella realtà, derivante dallo scenario musicale fine anni Sessanta e in gran voga nei Settanta, nel territorio indiano di Goa (località da cui prende i natali l'omonimo genere elettronico da cui è derivata la Psy-Trance) in quel periodo era ancora in vita e vegeto più che mai supportato dalla presenza di personaggi che ne raccontano le vicende e l'evoluzione grazie alla loro esperienza in prima persona. La dottoressa Cleo Oldzer a cui è dedicato il filmato è deceduta nel 2001, orfana di genitori ebrei, groupie, amante delle esperienze naturalistiche e dell'uso di droghe, una donna particolare e impegnata nel sociale a difesa delle donne rilasciando anche una tesi basata sulla prostituzione in Thailandia, Gilbert Levey noto come Goa Gil, dj statunitense e fra i padri fondatori del filone musicale che si allinea al pensiero di quel territorio e Swami William tanto affascinato dalla cultura dei "saggi viandanti" denominati Sandhu da entrarvi a far parte sono la rappresentazione di come quel mondo fosse un'isola felice, una zona vietata ai conformisti e da cui una volta entrati era difficile uscire senza portarsene via un pezzetto. A essi si contrappone la visione materialistica e molto occidentale espressa nelle parole dell'allora ministro di Goa Francisco Sardinha che vorrebbe più turismo monetario e meno nullafacenti sul proprio territorio. E' da sempre un conflitto mentale e morale quello portato avanti dalla favola "Hippie" del mondo, le immagini in Super-8 girate dalla Oldzer sono state inserite per evocare l'atmosfera e il vissuto degli anni Settanta, offrono uno spaccato di vita imperdibile per chi non ha vissuto tale momento storico, piacevole amarcord per chi invece vi fu risucchiato all'interno. Terminare il dvd con una riflessione su come le cose siano solo un mezzo e il materialismo dovrebbe aiutare a farci esaminare con più attenzione ciò che il nostro pianeta ci offre? Sì, forse il finale regala perle di filosofia sin troppo spicciola, in fin dei conti sarete voi poi a trarre le conclusioni. La Merlin Nose Records ridando vita e distribuzione a questo "documento" vi fornisce la possibilità di accedere in maniera diretta e discretamente argomentata nell'animo di una delle culture che trasversalmente hanno attraversato gli ultimi cinquant'anni, fra le altre cose la versione originale rilasciata nel 2002 andò sold-out dopo poco tempo divenendo un vero e proprio cult su internet, questa ristampa è una buona notizia per chi da tempo attendeva di averne una copia fisica in casa. "Last Hippie Standing" è dedicato solo agli appassionati? Probabilmente sì, e se guardandolo lo diventaste? Chissà... ~Reviewed by Mourning for Aristocrazia (Oct 2011)

• This documentary directed by Marcus Robbin from Berlin came out originally in 2002 and tells about Goa, India, where the Eastern spirituality and Western philosophies started to combine already in the 60’s when the first hippies from the Western world arrived in search of mystical experience and good time. This 45-minute DVD includes both footage from 1999-2000 shot in Goa, the melting pot of the West and East and Berlin and rare material from the 60’s and 70’s. One of the central themes is what it means to be a hippie and the first mission is to seek out the original Goa hippies. Very soon also trance techno and the massive rave parties that Goa is now famous for are featured. The rave culture is seen as a clear continuum to the full moon parties of the original hippies. Naturally one of the ingredients is also drugs, and this issue is dealt for example with a local politician who’d rather have rich tourists in the area to spend their money. There are lots of interviews with different kinds of people, but the main emphasis is on three interesting characters that have all moved to India from the USA. Cleo Odzer left her wealthy family in New York at the age of 16 and moved to Goa in the 70’s but had to go home in the 80’s due to serious drug problems. She has written the book Goa Freaks, My Hippie Years in India and returned to Goa that she had missed for 20 years for the millennium celebrations. Nowadays a famous Goa trance DJ Goa Gil moved to Goa in the 70’s from San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury area. Also originating from San Francisco, Swami William first came to India to study their holy men the sadhus and has lived many years in a mountain village in the Himalayas and has also been initiated as sadhu himself. It’s nice to hear and see what it was like to live in a hippie commune back in the day and to get even deep reflections of life and spiritual search, Hinduism, Yoga, meditation and psychedelic drugs. Towards the end Goa Gil and Swami William are brought to Berlin. As bonus material we’ve got a psychedelic music video, some more material of Swami’s trip to Berlin, a short section about some Indian traditions and what a doctor from Goa has to say about the hippies. This is an interesting documentary that every Goa lover and hippie culture enthusiastic should watch!  ~Reviewed by Dj Astro  for Psychotropic Zone (Feb 2012)

• In den 1960er Jahren entwickelte sich Goa für Aussteiger der westlichen Welt zum „Mekka“. Die an den Stränden des Staates stattfindenden „Goa-Partys“ hatten in dieser Zeit ihre Anfänge und gelten heute als Magnet für partyfreudige Touristen aus der Trance-Szene. Die Dokumentation setzt sich mit verschiedenen Veränderungen auseinander, die in Goa zwischen den Sechziger und Neunziger Jahren stattgefunden haben: Was ist aus den früheren Hippies geworden? Wie beurteilen Einheimische die damalige und die gegenwärtige Anziehungskraft Goas auf Reisende aus Europa und den USA? In welcher Hinsicht hat sich das gesellschaftliche und vor allem kulturelle Leben in Goa durch die vielen Migranten und Touristen im Laufe der Zeit verändert? „Last Hippie Standing“ ist das Debüt des deutschen Filmemachers Marcus Robbin, welches inzwischen Kultcharakter besitzt. Nicht nur für diejenigen, die ein ausgeprägtes Interesse für diese Thematik hegen, ist der Film gewiss recht aufschlussreich und sehenswert. Ende des Jahres sind Dreharbeiten für einen zweiten Teil geplant. ~Reviewed by Christoph Parkinson for Ox-Fanzine (Jan 2012)