The Brazilian Sertao Represented Through Brazilian Cinema

Introduction

A common feature in several works of contemporary national cinema is the themes related to urban life and the conflicted relationship asphalt hill. Outside the Rio-Sao Paulo, only one other line, the so-called deep Brazil, is explored with more emphasis (Schiff 469). This issue is not specificity of Brazilian cinema in recent years because it was the focus of analysis in the Cinema Novo, although they have been problematized since the bandit (1953), for example. We are now seeing a redefinition of reality northeastern hinterland, as can be seen in two films dealing with this same environment from new readings. Behind the Sun (2001), Walter Salles, is the third film adaptation of the novel name sake of Ismail Kadare and transports for Brazil a history of ethnic Albanians, about two rival families, governed by the logic of revenge. Already Cinema, Aspirins and Vultures (2005), based on the life of the great-uncle debutant director Marcelo Gomes, is about the friendship of a frontiersman and a German immigrant.

Discussion

Brazilian cinema has rebounded impressively from one of the worst crises of its history, brought about in large part by the withdrawal of government support under then president Fernando Collor de Mello in 1990. Feature films such as Four Days in September, Central Station, Me, You, Them, OVy of God, and Carandiru have attracted significant audiences and critical acclaim both at home and abroad.

This was accomplished through subsidizing the financing, production, and distribution of national films, which was important for two reasons. First, this increased the dollar amount that could be, spent on each film, thus allowing directors to employ more stylized techniques including more and varied camera angles, editing techniques, and the emerging special effects that came to dominate Hollywood films. Second, the additional money helped finance wide distribution of Brazilian films in expanding world markets (Sadlier 20). The military regime in Brazil was very interested in movies with patriotic themes, as was the case, a mega-production by Brazilian standards about the independence movement of Brazil in the second decade of the nineteenth century. Perhaps the film to benefit most from Embrafilme's aggressive backing, however, was Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands (1976), one of the most widely released and internationally popular films in Brazilian history. Its success made an international icon out of actress Sonia Braga and director Bruno Barreto, and his success with this film would pave the way for many films to come (Rocha 19).

After directing a series of films in Brazil that gained international recognition, especially Pixote in 1981, he moved to the United States and directed movies such as The Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985) and Ironweed (1987) with some of Hollywood's most celebrated actors (e.g., William Hurt, Jack Nicholson, and Meryl Streep). After a few years, tired of the extreme red tape of Hollywood studios, Babenco decided to return to Brazil and continue his accomplished career there.

In 1998, Cinema Novo and Beyond (New York: Museum of Modern Art), a collection ...