Since I saw the trailer for Searching for Sugar Man I’ve wanted to see the film. I finally got a chance to see it in a little independent theater in the city. It’s the usual independent theater: small screen, odd location, and gourmet snacks to purchase to eat. I knew what to expect, but I also didn’t know what to expect.

Searching for Sugar Man follows two white South African men who are searching for the Mexican-American (Chicano and Xicano were not identifiers used) singer/writer/performer Rodriguez. Both men in search of Rodriguez are huge fans. Many in the US did not know of his music, but he was “bigger than Elvis Presley” in South Africa in the 1970s. The documentary captures their efforts to find out what happened to Rodriguez, how did he die, were the rumors true he shot himself in the head or lit himself on fire in front of fans? Who is receiving the royalties checks for the albums and cd’s being sold by the millions in South Africa?