[1] In the minds of many, the words Brazil and culture
conjure up images of beaches, footballers and dancers in
vivid carnival costumes. Filmmaking and cinema, on the
[4] other hand, haven’t always figured amongst Brazil’s cultural
staples.
Repressed and censored by a military dictatorship
[7] throughout much of the 1970s and 1980s, Brazilian
filmmakers struggled to make an impact on audiences abroad.
Shortly after the country’s return to democracy, the Ministry
[10] of Culture was closed and the state-supported film industry
crumbled almost overnight. The consequent lack of funding
caused Brazilian cinema to reach a low point in the early
[13] 1990s. Today, less than two decades after the collapse of the
industry, Brazilian cinema is enjoying a renaissance, wowing
audiences and critics alike.
[16] So, why all the excitement over Brazilian cinema now?
Since the start of 2008 Brazilian films have gone from
strength to strength on the festival circuit.
[19] In February 2008, director Jose Padilha’s controversial
drama about police violence and corruption, Elite Squad, took
Berlin Film Festival’s top award, the Golden Bear.
[22] Another triumph followed at Cannes Film Festival
in April. Sandra Corvelloni won the best actress award for
her role in Walter Salles’ Linha de Passe. She plays a
[25] heavily pregnant, chain-smoking mother of four boys who
are all in their own ways attempting to transcend their
working-class lives.
[28] Salles’ film was also nominated for the prestigious
Palme d’Or, as was Blindness, the latest offering from
fellow Brazilian and director of City of God, Fernando Meirelles.
[31] Brazilian films are all about favelas and violence, then?
Indeed, one of the most celebrated Brazilian releases of the
past years, 2003’s City of God, as well as this year’s Elite
[34] Squad, feature ultra-violent narratives set mainly in slums,
or favelas, as they are known in Brazil. Both of these films,
incidentally, were scripted by screenwriter Braulio Mantovani.
[37] Both films were widely acclaimed for their honesty and
gripping storytelling, but condemned by certain critics for
excessive depictions of violence.
[40] At the time of its release, City of God — which has
inspired a whole genre of imitators with its fast-paced editing
and bright colors — was accused of glamorizing cruelty.
[43] Similarly, Elite Squad has been said to promote
fascism, as it depicts the often-brutal methods employed by
Brazil’s special police force in the ongoing battle with drug
[46] gangs in the favelas. Variety magazine even dubbed
Padilha’s oeuvre “a recruitment film for fascist thugs”, with
Rambo style heroes.
[49] But Padilha defends the film’s violent tone, insisting
that it was necessary in order to drive home its message.
“The bottom line is we are trying to say that the whole
[52] violence that goes on in Rio is mainly caused by ourselves
and we can possibly undo that”, he told CNN.
Other Brazilian directors are taking a less bloody
[55] approach in telling the stories, of the working classes. Lucia
Murat’s Mare, Nossa História de Amor, for example, is a
musical adaptation of Romeo and Juliet set in one of Rio’s
[58] hillside shantytowns — a novelty in Brazilian cinema.
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Murat directed a lighter story than Padilha’s, in a wealthier setting.