Astor Piazzolla was a genius bandoneon player (the instrument looks like an accordion) who caught tons of flak for revolutionizing tango with gestures from jazz and classical composition. Sort of like what A Tribe Called Quest did for hiphop, or what Magma did for rock. Piazzolla, The Years of the Shark weaves together two stories with newly found archival footage and home movies. The first story is Piazzolla’s rise to international acclaim, and the second is about his son, Daniel Rosenfeld, the film’s director, who’s been tasked to preserve his father’s legacy while also facing their complicated past. Both stories don’t hold tons of tension, but the music makes the movie worth a watch. And, I mean, this man changed tango with a squeeze box. What did you ever do?
Piazzolla, The Years of the Shark screens tonight and tomorrow night at the 45th Seattle International Film Festival. Further details here. Check out The Stranger‘s complete SIFF guide here.
