Meteoro (2006) Reviews

Director Diego de la Texera's magic realist fable Meteoro (AKA Meteorite, 2006) unfolds in April 1960, at the time of Brasilia's inauguration as the new capital of Brazil. As de la Texera's film opens, the Brazilian government orders the construction of a major highway between Brasilia and the remainder of the country. The work crew assigned to build the stretch between Rio de Janeiro and Fortaleza must labor in a severely underdeveloped, barren region, surrounded by thousands of square miles of uninhabited Brazilian wilderness. Each month, the government office in charge of the crew sends provisions to the unsupervised workers, including a cadre of prostitutes known as "Madam's Girls." The unit's condition nonetheless deteriorates ever further, until - on the night of a military coup d'etat - a yellow meteorite streaks across the sky and hits the ground, causing a fountain to open. Soon after, Julião, a Brazilian Indian, turns up and teaches the workers how to draw on the practices of the ancients to decode the messages written in the stars. Together, the workers establish a village, christen it 'Meteoro,' and live there contentedly until a Brazilian military helicopter turns up. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi