Brazil is making good movies!!
Chris Dashiell
Welcome to Cine-l, Gustavo. O PEQUENO DICIONARIO AMOROSO hasn't made it
to the States yet, but I'll watch for it.
> So, our good moviemakers all went to Hollywood, and then they can
> grow up.
> This happens with Bruno Barreto, who directs "O Quatrilho", the
> second movie in our story that have chance to win a Oscar.
> The first was "O pagador de promessas", a Walter Salles movie.
A film that I thought should have been nominated was Hector Babenco's
PIXOTE ('81), a tragedy about street kids in Sao Paulo. He later directed
the US/Brazilian production of Manuel Puig's KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN
('85) which got him (and the picture and screenplay) Oscar nominations
and William Hurt a win for Best Actor. He went to Hollywood and made
IRONWEED and AT PLAY IN THE FIELDS OF THE LORD.
Dashiell
Gustavo Almeida Gad泓ha
Hey internet guys,
I'm brazilian and I subscribe this list one month ago. I love
cinema and I did that to find more persons in the world with the same
problem. I think I came to the right place.
But until yesterday I have never written nothing to all of you. I
just read your messages.
What happens to me?
A really, really, different thing. I watch a new movie.
But it isn't a movie like all that we've ever seen in ours lives.
My country sometimes make good movies. We have good moviemakers,
but we haven't money to produce their movies.
So, our good moviemakers all went to Hollywood, and then they can
grow up.
This happens with Bruno Barreto, who directs "O Quatrilho", the
second movie in our story that have chance to win a Oscar.
The first was "O pagador de promessas", a Walter Salles movie.
And this surprise happens because of two things:
* the movie is really good;
* there isn't Hollywood money in production.
I'm talking about "O pequeno dicion=E1rio amoroso", something lik=
e
"Little Love Dictionary"(translating it name word by word) or "Words of
Love"(making a clever translation).
The movie tolds the story of a man and a woman that don't believe
in love. They're convicted that love doesn't exist.
But one day they find theirselves and live a love affair.
You will probably think that isn't nothing new. Sorry, but you
have to see to discover what makes the difference.
Why is this movie so cool?
1=BA Because the sound effects are very good. Never in the Brazil Cinema
History a movie had sound effects of same quality.
2=BA The casting is very good too; Only four actors participate on it.
3=BA The script is marvelous too, and conduct the movie like someone who
opens a dictionary, a love dictionary. A lot of words appears on the
screen in alphabetical order While the couple begins the meetings, the
fights, .. The words selected divide the movie in little parts, each one
tolds one moment in couple lives. The words are like a title of the next
screen bit.
Really Amazing!!!!
Tarantino made a revolution in cinema with a new kind of script, Pulp
Fiction: and this almost gives him an Oscar(I think Forrest Gump wins
only because it retolds the american history). This brazilian movie will
make a revolution too, I'm sure of that(and about the Oscar, well, we
have to wait until March 98).
4=BA The movie makes a lot of cinema language experiences. Experiences th=
at
remembers me Luis Bu=F1uel, and I'm not crazy or dummy. I watch "Un chien
andalou", "Belle de Jour", .... I know his experiments, I know how great
are then. This movie isn't better than Bu=F1uel movies, far from that. Bu=
t
it really new and rich to the cinema language .
To finish my message, I will just say to you: Watch this movie! You
will love it, I promisse.
I hope you understand me. English isn't my born language and I tried to
write right.
If you want more information about the movie ask me. I have a lot of.
That's all folks!!!
Gustavo Gad=EAlha
Setor de Cinema da UFBA
Faculdade de Comunica=E7=E3o
gade...@ufba.br
RRECOME
> A film that I thought should have been nominated was Hector Babenco's
> PIXOTE ('81), a tragedy about street kids in Sao Paulo. He later directed
Thanks, Dash, for reminding me of this great film. Time to rent it
again. There's a haunting performance by Marilia Pera as a prostitute.
Is she still acting?
Rolando
Terence C.C. Reis
Oh yes ! And how ! But now she's more dedicated to stage performances. Just
a correction at the original e-mail, if I'm not mistaken, 'O Pagador de
Promessas' was directed by Anselmo Duarte. And received a mention at
Cannes.
Terence
Gustavo Almeida Gad泓ha
Terence C.C. Reis wrote:
> Oh yes ! And how ! But now she's more dedicated to stage performances. =
Just
> a correction at the original e-mail, if I'm not mistaken, 'O Pagador de
> Promessas' was directed by Anselmo Duarte. And received a mention at
> Cannes.
>
> Terence
Yes, you're right Terence, I always change the names of these two
moviemakers. But have you ever heard something about Walter Salles?
Hey, your lastname is Reis, are you brazilian?
If you're, Did you see "Pequeno Dicion=E1rio Amoroso"?
Thanks, Gadelha.
Gustavo Almeida Gad泓ha
RRECOME wrote:
>
> > A film that I thought should have been nominated was Hector Baben=
co's
> > PIXOTE ('81), a tragedy about street kids in Sao Paulo. He later dire=
cted
> > Dashiell
>
> Thanks, Dash, for reminding me of this great film. Time to rent it
> again. There's a haunting performance by Marilia Pera as a prostitute.
> Is she still acting?
>
> Rolando
Yes she is still acting, and all I know about Mar=EDlia P=EAra is her the=
ater
performance in a brazilian version of Cabaret. If you're interested in
other movies with her I can try to find something more, actual or not.
Sometimes she acts on brazilian TV productions. If you're interested
about it, ask the site of the Rede Globo:
http://www.redeglobo.com.br
If you need more from brazilian cinema,ask me.
Gadelha.
pedro barros
Hi All,
This is my first message here in this mailing list. I am very happy to
be a subscriber of it. It has a lot a GOOD discussions about movie,
something we don't find very often here in Brazil.
Well, now to the message.
> again. There's a haunting performance by Marilia Pera as a prostitute.
> Is she still acting?
Yeah, she's on acting on stage and on some soap operas.
> a correction at the original e-mail, if I'm not mistaken, 'O Pagador > de
Promessas' was directed by Anselmo Duarte. And received a mention > at Cannes.
Yes, it was directed by Anselmo Duarte, but it wasn't only nominated in
Cannes, but WON the main prize.
[]s, Pedro Barros
Terence C.C. Reis
| Terence C.C. Reis wrote:
|
| > Oh yes ! And how ! But now she's more dedicated to stage performances.
| > a correction at the original e-mail, if I'm not mistaken, 'O Pagador =
de
| > Promessas' was directed by Anselmo Duarte. And received a mention at
| > Cannes.
Gustavo Almeida Gad=EAlha replied :
| Yes, you're right Terence, I always change the names of these two
| moviemakers. But have you ever heard something about Walter Salles?
| Hey, your lastname is Reis, are you brazilian?
| If you're, Did you see "Pequeno Dicion=E1rio Amoroso"?
Yes, Walter Salles owns the third greatest private bank in Brazil , and
he's the father to Walter Salles Jr. ; ). Now seriously, what's the name =
of
the film he made ? 'Terra Estrangeira', or something like, I believe. Som=
e
acclaimed him, others said that it looked like a 2 hrs video clip. What d=
id
you think ? I haven't seen. About not seeing, I'm ashamed, but there's to=
o
many time since my last brazilian film, so, I haven't seen PDA. And as y=
ou
may have already noticed, yes, I'm brazilian, and I have bananas.
On the subject of brazilian films, I wonder if someone on this list had t=
he
oportunity of watching 2 great moments of brazilian cinema: 'O Cangaceiro=
',
by Nelson Pereira dos Santos, a film that lots of critics claim to be the
best brazilian film made ( including Pauline Kael ), and Glauber Rocha's
films. All of them were part of the Cinema Novo ( New Cinema ) movement,
which was inspired by the italian neo-realism. Glauber Rocha went beyond
neo-realism boundaries, nonetheless.
Terence
P.S. : quite odd, writing to a brazilian in english...
pedro barros
Terrence
> Now seriously, what's the name of the film he made ?
I didn't watch 'Terra Estrangeira' yet, but I remember his first movie,
a pretty good thriller (??? or suspens movie). It was 'A Grande Arte',
which costed more than a million bucks (too much for Brazil). It was
based on Rubem Fonseca's novel and starred Peter Coyote, Giulia Gam,
Raul Cortez.
Did you watch it?
> oportunity of watching 2 great moments of brazilian cinema: 'O > Cangaceiro',
by Nelson Pereira dos Santos
I watched it but I didn't enjoy it as any other Northeastern story (it
is not racism, just my humble opinion, Ok?). I prefer his 'Boca de Ouro'
a Nelson Rodrigues' story.
[]s, sorry about me poor English.
cari...@aol.com
Gustavo Almeida Gad泓ha <gade...@UFBA.BR> writes:
>
> I'm talking about "O pequeno dicion=E1rio amoroso", something lik=
>e
>"Little Love Dictionary"(translating it name word by word) or "Words of
>Love"(making a clever translation).
> The movie tolds the story of a man and a woman that don't believe
>in love. They're convicted that love doesn't exist.
> But one day they find theirselves and live a love affair.
>
Gustavo, I had not heard of this film, but I will remember the title, and watch for it.
Thank you.
Carolyne
Virgulino
For anyone interested, check out DONA FLOR AND HER TWO HUSBANDS and BAR
ESPERANÇA, which I consider to be the best Brazilian pictures ever made.
They have humour, romance and a good degree of the wicked poetry that
swings in the Brazilian everyday life.
-Virgulino
Virgulino
Rolando writes:
"" A film that I thought should have been nominated was Hector
Babenco's
> PIXOTE ('81), a tragedy about street kids in Sao Paulo. He later
directed
> Dashiell
Thanks, Dash, for reminding me of this great film. Time to rent it
again. There's a haunting performance by Marilia Pera as a prostitute.
Is she still acting?
Rolando""
Yes indeed. However, due to the almost bankrupt condition of the Brazilian
Film scene from the late eighties to early nighties, I cannot recall her
latest works. She is also a superb stage actrees.
~Virgulino
Sergio Pulido
CI>Rolando writes:
CI>"" A film that I thought should have been nominated was Hector
CI>Babenco's
CI>> PIXOTE ('81), a tragedy about street kids in Sao Paulo. He later
CI>directed
CI>> Dashiell
I remember reading sometime ago of a movie centered on the actual life
of the late actor of Pixote (Ferdinand Ramos). Does this movie really
exists or am I wrong?. BTW one of Nick Cave & The Bad Seed's finest
albums (Tender Prey) is dedicated to his memory.
I am also curious about "Tieta do agreste" a film based on another novel
by Jorge Amado which has music by the exquisite Caetano Veloso. Anybody
seen it?
Sergio Pulido
Mailto:pu...@planet.losandes.com.ar
Come de mi, come de mi carne.
Tomate el tiempo en desmenuzarme.
Terence C.C. Reis
|
|
| I remember reading sometime ago of a movie centered on the actual life
| of the late actor of Pixote (Ferdinand Ramos). Does this movie really
| exists or am I wrong?. BTW one of Nick Cave & The Bad Seed's finest
| albums (Tender Prey) is dedicated to his memory.
| I am also curious about "Tieta do agreste" a film based on another novel
| by Jorge Amado which has music by the exquisite Caetano Veloso. Anybody
| seen it?
|
| Sergio Pulido
Yes, there's this movie, but it's more like a documentary, if I'm not
mistaken. Fernando Ramos was actually Pixote, which was also more or less
based on his life as a streetkid. And after Pixote he tried to continue as
an actor, but failed and returned to his crime life.
I can't say much about Tieta do Agreste, but it was not really well
received . People claimed that it was too conventional. Y'know, we have no
idea of how many times a Jorge Amado's work was adapted into some kind of
visual art, theather, soap operas, films, whatever. So we really expected
something more audacious. It tried to be nominated for the Oscars this
year, but as you may have perceived, it failed.
Terence
Dave Vermillion
On Wed, 23 Apr 1997, Sergio Pulido wrote:
> I remember reading sometime ago of a movie centered on the actual life
> of the late actor of Pixote (Ferdinand Ramos). Does this movie really
> exists or am I wrong?.
You're right: the film is called QUEM MATOU PIXOTE? (WHO KILLED PIXOTE?).
The reviews seem to agree that the film doesn't rise to the quality of the
story:
----------------
Chicago Tribune, April 4, 1997
"Quem Matou Pixote?"(" Who Killed Pixote? ") (star) (star) D: Jose
Joffily; Brazil, 1996 (120 min). Joffily's feature -- it's not a
documentary -- looks at what happened after "Pixote," when its street
urchin star, Fernando Ramos de Silva of Sao Paulo's favelas (or ghettos),
was irrevocably altered by his sudden fame and saw his life spun into
hell. But, although the details are juicy, the movie's by-the-numbers
approach flattens what should be a horrifying moral tale. Fri, April 4, 9
p.m.; Sat, April 5, 7:30 p.m.; Mon, April 7, 8 p.m. (Chestnut Station) --
Achy Obejas.
---------------
Hollywood Reporter, October 28, 1996
WHO KILLED PIXOTE? In 1981, Hector Babenco's ''Pixote,'' a gritty account
of the crime-ridden life of a 10-year-old street orphan, became an
international sensation and drew considerable attention to its star,
baby-faced Fernando Ramos da Silva. Six years later, the then-teenaged da
Silva was still clinging to his 15 minutes of fame and began to embrace a
lifestyle that tragically echoed that of his screen character. Filmmaker
Jose Joffily traces da Silva's rise and fatal fall in the overly
dramatized '' Who Killed Pixote? '' The unique art-imitating-life-
imitating-art angle aside, the film suffers from some heavy-handed writing
and directing, at odds with a natural, spirited performance from its young
lead. And despite the whodunit theme alluded to by the title, Joffily
tips any potential mystery early on in the film, making that question mark
a moot point.
--------------
Los Angeles Times, October 28, 1996
In 1987, six years after Hector Babenco had made the landmark "Pixote"
with 10-year-old Fernando Ramos da Silva, a boy from the Sao Paulo slums,
the young man was gunned down by police in 1987. There is certainly a fine
film to be made from the story of Da Silva, who struggled to make it as an
actor only to fail and be reclaimed by the streets. Despite a
heartbreaking portrayal by Cassiano Carneiro, "Who Killed Pixote?" is not
it. Director Jose Joffily reportedly remarked that he wanted to make the
most commercial film possible and that he did, exploiting Da Silva's fate
in the most obvious manner.
---------------
Variety, November 3, 1996
A Coeves Films production. Produced by Alvarina Souza Silva, Paulo Halm,
Jose Joffily. Directed by Jose Joffily. Screenplay, Halm, Joffily, based
on the books "Pixote, the Law of the Strongest" by Jose Loureiro and " Who
Killed Pixote? " by Cida Venancio da Silva. Camera (color), Nonato
Estrela; editor, Vera Freire; music, David Tygel, Mauricio Masetro.
Reviewed at Montreal World Film Festival, Aug. 29, 1996. (Also in
AFI/L.A. fest.) Running time: 120 MIN.
"Who Killed Pixote? " is a disappointing dramatic reconstruction of the
turbulent life and untimely death of child actor Fernando Ramos da Silva,
who achieved instant celebrity in his first movie, "Pixote," Hector
Babenco's hearbreaking expose about poor children in Sao Paulo. A missed
opportunity to make a powerful drama about Brazil's underprivileged class,
new film is directed in an over-the-top tabloid style, unlikely to appeal
even to "Pixote's" most devoted fans. Pic may travel the international
festival road as a curio item, based on Babenco's well-respected movie,
but prospects for theatrical release are meager.
Ramos da Silva (Cassiano Carneiro), a working-class boy in Sao Paulo, was
only 11 when director Babenco cast him in the title role of "Pixote"
(1980), a haunting film about children forced to become street criminals.
The movie won numerous prizes, including citations for best foreign film
from both the N.Y. and L.A. film critics, gaining the boy an instant
international celebrity.
Sadly, his fame and success were fleeting, for he managed to make only one
film despite ambitious dreams "to make it big" as a movie star. According
to this biodrama, the uneducated Fernando had trouble reading the few
scripts he was sent, and his one effort at appearing in a popular soap
ended disastrously.
Navigating between Fernando's public and private personas, "Who Killed
Pixote?" places his tragedy within the context of misery, poverty and
injustice in which he and his large family lived. Resented by his brutish
elder brother for being the favorite child, Fernando was subjected to
humiliation -- at home he was called "the poor man's James Dean" -- even
though for a short period of time he was the sole provider.
With limited prospects for a brighter future, Fernando apparently was
dragged into a world of petty crime by his brothers. In 1987, he was
caught by police during a burglary. Sent to prison, he began getting
unexpected visits from an admiring fan, Cida (Luciana Rigueira), who later
became his loyal wife. Unable to support her and their newborn daughter,
Fernando sank deeper and deeper into depression and crime.
Based on Fernando's life, as recounted in Brazilian journalist Jose
Loureiro's expose "Pixote, the Law of the Strongest" and his widow's
memoirs, " Who Killed Pixote? ," the film points a finger at the police
force, and one officer in particular. It's hard to gauge how accurate the
screen portrait is, though the drama is too movieish and replete with
cliches to register strongly.
Pic covers a lot of territory, but despite ample time, it's a bit
superficial.
Despite honorable intentions and an interesting life to relate, "Pixote"
is not touching. The film is constantly on the verge of hysteria, with
sequence after sequence ending with characters sobbing or screaming at
each other. This is also reflected in the acting: Young thesps Carneiro
and Rigueira render emotionally raw, but ultimately not very inspiring
performances, which works against the overall effect of a film that
suffers from unbridled melodramatics.
--------------
Dave