Valentina

Valentina (II) (2020) is a Brazilian movie written and directed by Cássio Pereira dos Santos. It stars Thiessa Woinbackk in the title role.

Valentina is a transgendered woman. Her parents are separated. Her mother and she move to a smaller city in order to avoid the transgender bias they encountered before. Not that there's less prejudice in the small city, but the plan is to keep Valentina's transgender status a secret. The plot continues from there.

The movie is made great by the amazing acting of Thiessa Woinbackk as Valentina. Woinbackk is, in fact, a transgender woman, so she knows the territory. She's a terrific actor, and carries the film along with her.

We saw this movie as part of the extraordinary ImageOut Rochester LGBTQ Film Festival. Valentina doesn't have enough ratings to be meaningful yet. My guess is that more people will see it and enjoy it. I rated it 9.

The movie is filled with ideas that are important for those who don't know about the struggles of a transgender teen. Knowing that the main character, Valentina, was portrayed by an actual transgender person makes it even more interesting to watch.

The main problem is in the plot. So realistic and, at the same time, so unrealistic. The events are there, but there's just a lot going on in a very short period of time.

There's quite some flaws in the dialogues, which gives that funny impression that the characters are able to read each other's minds all the time. Some sentences just don't sound natural at all and, overall, there's very little smooth communication.

One thing that didn't help me engage with this movie is how uninteresting some characters are. Even the side characters and villains, that can often save a whole movie, are unrelatable and poorly written.

Now for the good aspects: I love the emotional scenes and how the main character connects with the people around her. Even though some of the actors seem in the beginning of their career, overall, they did a good job.

The film depicts Valentina: a transgender young woman in Brazil.

In Brazil more than 80% of transgender youth drop out of school as the environment is too dangerous.

The average life expectancy of women like Valentina is 35 years old.

Valentina's mother moves her to the country side so she may enrol in a new school there. We watch Valentina start a new life in what the local kids call a hick town with this constant feeling of impending calamity.

Woinbackk portrays the role beautifully and carries the film gently but masterly.

A very real protrait of a transwoman in Brazil where Thiessa carries the film on her shoulders like few actresses can..

The movie can be slow at times but in general the movie has strong characters and actors/actresses that carrie them!

I really hope too se her in more movies in the feature!

It is a very well made film; the plot is pretty good and Thiessa Woinbackk's acting is decent; Cássio Pereira dos Santos has a lot of potential as a film director.