Paulo Autran Movies
- 2007
- PG
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A 12-year-old Brazilian boy who longs to see his team win out over Italy in the 1970 World Cup match finds his entire world turned upside down as his left-wing parents are forced into hiding and he is sent to live with his grandfather in São Paulo's Bom Retiro district. Though his country is being held in the grip of a military dictatorship and the war in Vietnam is raging abroad, young Mauro can't seem to think about anything else but the upcoming World Cup match between Brazil and Italy. If Jairzinho, Pelé, and company can just win their third World Cup title, team Brazil will earn their third star on the strip -- a feat that no other team in the history of the sport has ever managed to accomplish. When his Catholic mother and Jewish father are suddenly forced to go "on holiday," young Mauro is swept out of his middle-class existence in Minas Gerais and taken to stay with his paternal grandfather in bustling Bom Retiro. A multi-ethnic district in which Jews, Arabs, and Greeks all live side by side, Bom Retiro begins to heat up with World Cup fever as things both at home and abroad all seem to be spiraling toward disaster. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michel Joelsas, Germano Haiut, (more)
- 1999
Marcos Bernstein, the co-writer of Central Station (1998), spins this gorgeously photographed, humanistic portrait of a family patriarch in the waning years of his life. Anthony Quinn plays Giuseppe, the aging head of a large family of Italians living in Curitiba, Brazil. While his great-grandchildren's lives drift in separate directions -- one great-grandson wrestles with nudging the family pasta business in a new direction as a great-granddaughter decides to take the plunge into acting -- Giuseppe is troubled when a relative makes a sudden visit from Italy. She looks exactly like his beloved wife, who died in an unexplained plane crash. One day, he summons his strength, rises from his wheelchair, and walks along the beach to reminisce about his past love. Oriundi was screened at the 1999 Vancouver Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anthony Quinn, Paulo Betti, (more)
- 1985
In a specialized, hermetic drama about love won and lost, not necessarily by the same individuals, novice director Christine Laurent has focused on the backstage melodramas of an opera company. The conductor for an upcoming performance of the Marriage of Figaro has his mind and heart on other matters -- an entrancing diva who keeps him enraptured with her presence and voice. In the meantime, he finds fault with his cast members who cannot, of course, measure up to the woman of his dreams. As singers encounter one problem or another, it is clear that something has to be done about the conductor. Director Laurent designed costumes for both theater and opera, giving her some insight into the venue. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Magali Noël, Krystyna Janda, (more)
- 1966
This Brazilian example of cinema novo chronicles the struggle of a man deeply entangled within unstable and crooked politics. The story is told in flashback by a writer who explains how he got into his present situation. He had been supporting a conservative party leader, but then decided to support the liberal candidate. The liberal wins the election, but soon reneges upon his campaign promises. The disillusioned writer decides to stay out of politics and resume his writing. Unfortunately, his girlfriend convinces him to try to talk the country's leader into pursuing a particular direction. The writer is soon shot. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jardel Filho, Paulo Autran, (more)
- 1954
O Destino em Apuros (Destiny in Trouble) was Brazil's first feature-length color film. This musical fantasy is built around the talents of Rio De Janeiro's most famous ballerina, Beatriz Cosuelo. As the title indicates, Beatriz's fate is dictated by Destiny, which manifests itself in ways that are not always conducive to the heroine's happiness. Much of the film was shot on location in Sao Paulo, with a few inadequately matched-up studio "exteriors." The color in O Destino em Apuros was primitive and uneven when compared to like-vintage American productions, but as the first of its kind, it was well-received by domestic audiences. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Helio Souto, Paulo Autran, (more)
